EMMIE BOESE
Hutch Post
HUTCHINSON, Kan. — At a retirement ceremony for HutchCC President Dr. Carter File this week, his predecessor Ed Berger said leadership is about knowing when to take a step back. File took Berger's place in the presidency in July of 2014.
"My succession plans were certainly looking at Carter coming in and picking up the reins where we left off," Berger said at the retirement reception. "It was great to have that opportunity."
File's retirement ceremony was held on Tuesday, April 2 at Stringer Fine Arts Center.
"Mostly I was just honored by the turnout and some of the kind words that people had to say about me," File said.
File will retire from HutchCC effective Saturday, Aug. 31, 2024. He has a more than 24-year career in higher education. File was the college's Vice President of Operations and Finance from 2005-2014.
"When our dean of finance retired, Bill Warner, we knew we wanted to replace Bill with somebody as strong as Bill was," Berger said. "We wanted to replace him with somebody that had great experience as the dean of finance. And so we looked across the community college spectrum and there was one person that really stood out. An individual who was well respected by his colleagues, well respected by other community college presidents, and that was Carter File."
File said he and his wife Tracey have thoughts of moving to the Tampa, Florida area after retirement to be closer to family. However, the move would not be immediate. File said retirement is a bittersweet feeling because he knows he and his wife would be leaving good friends behind if they decide to move.
"We've always just kind of lived our lives as the next adventure, the next thing up," File said. "If we do move to Tampa, we'll look for something to do down there that will keep us busy."
The college announced on Thursday, Nov. 9, 2023 that File submitted his request to the college board of trustees indicating his intent to retire.
"I hope that people look at what we did here at the college during my time as Vice-President of Finance and Operations and President as time where we really provided opportunities for students," File said. "Whether they were our students in the classroom, whether they are students in activities like band or, you know, jazz band or choir, whether they were our Ag (agriculture) judging students, whether they were our athletes."
According to the Presidential hiring timeline, the intent is to approve a new president for the college by Wednesday, May 1, 2024 and that person would begin at HutchCC on Monday, July 1, 2024.
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