Southwestern Oregon Community College is sad to announce today the loss of its leader of the Curry Campus at Brookings – Executive Dean of Curry Campus Les Balsiger. Les who started in his position in June 2017 passed away Thursday, Jan. 4. “Les did an amazing amount of good work in his six months with our college,” said Southwestern President Dr. Patty Scott. “He immersed himself in the community and built strong partnerships, working with many individuals toward a goal to create more programs and services to meet community workforce and lifelong learning needs.” “In his first few months on the job, Les dealt with the Curry County fire as the Brookings campus and community were faced with evacuations. True to his nature, Les was a calm, effective and compassionate communicator,” Dr. Scott said. The college is in touch with the Balsiger family regarding services, which will be announced at a later date. Southwestern has appointed Curry Campus Assistant Director Aleta Mankamyer to oversee operations in the interim. In addition, the college is providing grief counseling services and assisting staff and students as needed.
