Even if you’ve never met Dr. Sherry Schumann, if you live in Collin County you’ve probably benefited from her work. As the executive vice president for Collin College, Dr. Schumann’s endeavors are deeply woven into the fabric of the college’s past, present, and future. This summer, Dr. Schumann will retire from the college, but before she leaves, we want to share a few highlights of her accomplishments.
Students first and foremost
Years ago, as a Collin College physical education professor, Dr. Schumann put students at the top of her priorities. As an early adopter of technology and innovations in teaching, she embraced the development of new methodologies contributing to student success. Whether teaching via television and online or developing web-based resources, she recognized that availability of courses and support were critical to students who needed the flexibility of distance learning at a time when options were limited. She created and published textbooks and lab manuals for use by students and faculty in multiple fitness courses, reducing materials costs to students. Any royalties from the materials were donated to the Collin College Foundation Athletics Excellence Fund to provide support for students in physical education and athletics. She was named an Outstanding Professor for the district in 2003, a distinction she considers her greatest honor.
Though she has worked for the college for more than 20 years, students are still at the top of her list today. Currently, the college’s Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC) liaison, her illustrious career includes serving as the senior vice president of Academic, Workforce and Enrollment Services, vice president/provost, and associate vice president and dean of distance and weekend college, now known as iCollin and Collin Weekend College. Other positions included serving as full-time faculty and assistant basketball coach at Valdosta State University, faculty at East Tennessee State University, and dean of Physical Education and Athletics and athletics director for Hartnell College.
Her early days in athletics may have contributed to her unique, varied skillset. Dr. Schumann is known to have the ability to persevere juggling many tasks for long periods of time. Her colleagues appreciate her fair and balanced approach, organized mind which sees the big picture as well as the details, her ability to read and process massive amounts of information, her great zeal for life, and her keen sense of humor. Each of these qualities came into play as she worked tirelessly to foster the college’s recent growth.
New Collin College facilities, sites, and programs
In her last years as vice president/provost of the McKinney Campus, the college planned and constructed the new Cary A. Israel Health Sciences Center, conference center, and student center, facilitating the growth of the campus and programs. From 2018 to 2021, the college added a state-of-the-art Public Safety Training Center and four new campuses with over 820,000 square feet in the midst of a pandemic. The Public Safety Training Center, a 25-acre first responder training facility opened in 2018. In 2020, the college opened the Technical Campus in Allen and the Wylie Campus. In 2021, the college opened the Celina and Farmersville campuses. In that same year, the IT Center at the Frisco Campus opened. Dr. Schumann’s leadership skills and accreditation knowledge repeatedly came into play as these new facilities and sites developed.
During this timeframe, the college also added a variety of new workforce programs ranging from construction management and welding to veterinary technology and urban sustainable agriculture. In fact, in Fall 2020 alone, the college added 14 new programs. Along with her colleagues and team members, Dr. Schumann navigated and led the successful accreditation process for these new programs.
Bring on the bachelor’s degrees
In 2017, Collin College was authorized to offer up to three baccalaureate degrees. In 2019, the SACSCOC board of trustees initially approved the college’s level change from a Level I Institution, granting two-year degrees, to a Level II Institution, granting four-year degrees. The continuing accreditation as a Level II Institution was approved in 2020 after a successful site visit from SACSCOC. In 2021, the college was authorized to offer up to five baccalaureate degrees.
Today, the college offers a Bachelor of Science in Nursing and a Bachelor of Applied Technology in Cybersecurity and will offer a new Bachelor of Applied Science (BAS) in Construction Management beginning Fall 2022. Dr. Schumann worked diligently behind the scenes with the SACSCOC visiting team on each of these new bachelor’s degrees and is involved in researching the college’s future bachelor’s degrees.
Those who have worked by her side will tell you that Dr. Schumann doesn’t seek the limelight. Instead, she prefers to quietly get things done. Though she may work behind the scenes, Collin’s students and the community will continue to benefit from her quality efforts for many years to come.
Collin College District President Dr. Neil Matkin reflects on Dr. Schumann over his seven-year tenure.
“Sherry exemplifies the ideal professional teammate,” Dr. Matkin said. “She has no sense of ownership, focuses on actually getting things done, and insists on the highest level of quality. With a sterling professional ethic, Sherry has been someone who has taken on the big challenges. The result is always improvement for the college and for the students and communities we work to serve. To say that we will miss her is the understatement of the century.”