Richard Ammons

Richard A. Ammons of Minneapolis, Minn., has been named vice president for college relations and will assume direction of Colby's development, alumni relations and communications offices November 1. He brings more than 20 years of experience in advancement work at colleges and universities, most recently as vice president for college advancement at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn., where he served from 1995 through 2003.

A graduate of Amherst College, Ammons earned an M.B.A. at Stanford University and a certificate from the Institute for Educational Management, Graduate School of Education at Harvard University. Prior to working for Macalester he was vice president for development at Morehouse College, and he worked in development at The Johns Hopkins University and Amherst before that.

President William D. Adams called Ammons "a seasoned professional with a long record of success in higher education advancement, including impressive results directing very successful capital campaigns.

"He knows the workings and the needs of institutions like Colby, and he has the leadership skills to help the College achieve some very ambitious goals in the coming years," Adams said.

Ammons said he is committed to liberal arts colleges. "They offer a special type of educational experience unavailable elsewhere, and Colby seems to share particular values that I hold dear," he said.

Ammons will replace Randy Helm, who left to be president of Muhlenberg College. Ammons said he and his wife, Noel James, an artist and arts administrator, are eager to move to the Waterville area. His daughter Moriah, 10, will live part of the year in Maine with them.