Voices that Inspire

What inspires you from WFSU Public Media? Here's this week's Voices That Inspire. I'm Jim Murdoin. I have the privilege of serving as the President of Tallahassee Community College. I think of leadership first of all as a behavior not a position. Yes, I hold a leadership role now, but I've not always held a leadership role. And when I think about the people at the college, one of the things that I'm always inspired by is the leadership behaviors of people at all levels throughout the college. Some of the best ideas come from maintenance staff and custodians and students and everyone. So for me, leadership is a behavior. It's something that I try to foster in everyone and encourage them to exhibit. The role I really enjoy the most is feeling like we have some influence on giving someone an opportunity for a great life. By giving them a degree or a credential that allow them to get a job with a family sustaining wage. A lot of people think that students come to TCC because that's their only choice. That's just not true. The best and the brightest choose us sometimes because we are affordable. Some people come to us because of our reputation as one of the top colleges in the country. So people choose to come to TCC. We are proud of the fact that there are students who could not get in somewhere else who come to us. Colleges or community colleges are really the democratic institutions in higher education. We accept anyone. Our mission is to meet you where you are and help you move forward. But the misperception is that we're not getting the best and brightest and we are. I'm Jim Murdoch, president of Tallahassee Community College and I want to thank you for the opportunity to do this. Voices that inspire is sponsored by Leadership Tallahassee, a program of the Tallahassee Chamber, celebrating 35 years of cultivating community leadership.