Gregory D. Little will be Midlands Technical College’s seventh president.

The Midlands Technical College Commission made the selection after four finalists, including Vicky Wood, Washington State College of Ohio president; Forest E. Mahan, Aiken Technical College president; Barrie Kirk, Midlands Technical College provost; and Little visited campuses and participated in open forums in late March.

Little was most recently the acting executive director and president of the S.C. Commission on Higher Education, according to a release from MTC, but before that, he held roles as vice president for strategic partnerships and innovation for the S.C. Technical College System, and was also superintendent for Mount Airy City Schools in North Carolina and was well-known to Lexington locals as superintendent of Lexington County School District One.

“Faculty, staff, and stakeholders in the MTC community provided generous and valuable feedback to commissioners,” MTC Commission Chair Sandra Jackson said in the release. “That input was instrumental in our decision to hire Dr. Little, and we are confident that he will guide the college in future success.”

The Association of Community College Trustees helped the MTC Commission in the search and hiring process and according to the release, there were 58 candidates to start with from across 30 states and another country.

Little has almost three decades' worth of experience in education across North and South Carolina and holds an undergraduate degree in English from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a master’s degree and doctorate in curriculum and instruction from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Little will replace current MTC president Ronald Rhames on July 1.

Rhames announced his 2024 retirement in August 2023, according to a release from the college.

Rhames has been a part of MTC for over 35 years with two years as a student and 33 years as an employee, which includes eight years as the MTC president.

“Dr. Rhames is the first graduate of any South Carolina Technical College to become president of a S.C. technical college and the first African American President of MTC,” read a 2023 release from the college. “As president, Dr. Rhames provides unique insight and leadership that is innovative, visionary, and effective in addressing the challenges and opportunities of the college.”

These changes are happening at the same time as Lexington One undergoes the search for its new superintendent.

According to former reporting from the Chronicle, Lexington County School District One Board of Trustees has selected three finalists, all of them current school district superintendents around the country, for the position of superintendent/superintendent-elect.

Chris Ballenger, Keith Price and Erin Slater are the finalists.

Ballenger is the current superintendent of Warren County Public Schools in Virginia and holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Southwestern College.

Price is the current superintendent of the Georgetown County School District in South Carolina and he is currently pursuing a doctorate of education from the University of South Carolina.

Slater is the current superintendent of Fort Madison Community School District in Fort Madison, Iowa and she holds a doctorate in education from Northern Illinois University.

The final round of interviews has already taken place but a selection has not been announced as of the morning of April 17.