ESCANABA — The Bay College Board of Trustees was very pleased with Bay College President Laura Coleman’s performance over the past year, according to a press release issued by the college Tuesday. A special board meeting focusing on Coleman’s annual performance review was held Tuesday afternoon.

“The students and communities we serve should know Bay College is being led by someone we, as a diverse seven member board, have very high confidence in,” the press release stated. It was also noted Coleman had strong performance ratings in all categories.

Coleman’s “passion for student success, effective fiscal management, and strong advocacy skills” have given the college an ideal opportunity to continue their growth and success in the future, the press release stated. Trends seen in Bay’s employee satisfaction survey suggest another year of improving ratings in a variety of areas, as well.

Coleman voiced her appreciation of the people she works with in her role as Bay’s president.

“I am blessed to work for an exceptional board and with exceptional colleagues at Bay College. Both the board (of Trustees) and the employees are focused on student success, community success and a culture of success,” she stated.

Coleman also noted the Higher Learning Commission has awarded Bay College eight more years of accreditation (the longest accreditation time available). The college’s EMT/paramedic program also went through accreditation and has been preliminarily awarded full accreditation. The college’s nursing program also successfully went through this process.

Coleman stated Bay College has had a significant increase in student completion rates, as indicated by its IPEDS data collected by the United States Department of Education.