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Dr. Torence Powell
Superintendent/President
Napa Valley College
**New Date**
Thursday, January 19th at 5:30pm via Zoom
Dr. Powell began his position as NVC’s Superintendent/President in July 2022. He came to NVC with a long history of working in higher education. Most recently, he was the associate vice chancellor of instruction, workforce and economic development at Los Rios Community College District (LRCCD) where he led and oversaw instructional services activities and strategic enrollment management activities over the district’s four colleges. Prior to that position, he was interim vice president, student access and online engagement, where he led a district-wide initiative to create program pathways for students to complete degrees and certificates completely online across all four colleges at LRCCD.
Before his 12 years in service at the district level, Dr. Powell worked for several years at Cosumnes River College, one of LRCCD’s four colleges. He held four different positions there, starting as the GreenForce project director to establish pathways for students in ‘green sector’ careers, in fields such as architecture, construction, engineering and energy. After two years, he became the dean of communication, visual and performing arts before moving to the division dean and eventually being promoted to associate vice president, instruction and student learning.
His career in education began as an adjunct professor at the University of the Redlands, teaching service learning and environmental justice, engaging students in the Colorado River restoration project on his ancestral tribal reservation (The Quechan Nation) in Fort Yuma, Arizona.
Dr. Powell’s passion and dedication to devoting his career to education stemmed in part from the transformative experiences he had as a first-generation community college student in South Sacramento. He received his bachelor's degree in social science with a minor in history from Cal State, Los Angeles. He then earned two master's degrees. His first was from the University of the Redlands on educational leadership, and his second master’s, from the University of Washington in Seattle, was on urban planning. He earned his EdD in educational leadership at UC Davis, where his dissertation analyzed student success and persistence in developmental math sequences.
An avid runner, he has completed multiple half and full marathons and enjoys cycling and basketball. He and his wife, Jennie, have to children, a son Lorenzo and a daughter Alyana.
