Posted: May 21, 2025
Contact: Noelle Hawton, Noelle.Hawton@MinnState.edu, 651-201-1801
ST. PAUL, Minn., May 21, 2025 –The Board of Trustees of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities has named Pakou Yang to serve as interim president of Normandale Community College. The appointment becomes effective June 4, 2025.
“When I interviewed Dr. Yang for the interim position, I found her to be very inspiring,” said Scott Olson, chancellor of Minnesota State. “Dr. Yang’s extensive knowledge and experience in higher education will serve her well in this role. She has a strong vision for the college that I believe positions it for continued growth and excellence and I am so pleased she will be leading Normandale as interim president in the coming year.”
Dr. Yang has devoted her career to serving students at Minnesota State colleges and universities, both in the classroom and in leadership roles on campus and at the system office. She has a proven track record of fostering student success, increasing enrollment and retention, and championing inclusion and belonging efforts.
Dr. Yang currently serves as provost and vice president of academic and student affairs at Century College in White Bear Lake, Minn., a position she has held since 2021. In this role, she has worked to increase student success and narrow equity gaps through data-driven, evidence-based practices and strategies. She implemented a comprehensive approach to recruitment and retention across academic and student affairs, which has maintained or grown enrollment at the college during her tenure. She has also supported innovations in academic programs, delivery models, and strategic scheduling.
Prior to her current role, Dr. Yang served Century College as vice president of student affairs and enrollment management from 2018-2021. As the vice president of the student affairs division, she provided leadership to maintain academic continuity for all student affairs operations during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also led the student affairs division to implement new strategies, best practices, and measurable outcomes focused on holistic student development.
She served as system director for P-20 and college readiness at the Minnesota State system office from 2014-2018, where she provided leadership on systemwide positions, policies, procedures, and legislative actions regarding issues pertaining to dual enrollment, admissions, college access, course placement, developmental education, and K-12 higher education alignment.
Proceeding that, Dr. Yang served Century College as an academic dean from 2008-2014 for the division of behavioral and social science, communication, physical education and health, humanities, and the translation and interpreting program. She was also a full-time tenured communication instructor at Century College from 2003-2008.
National and statewide recognition she has received includes the Leadership Excellence Award from the National Institute of Staff and Organizational Development (2024), the Teaching Excellence Award from the National Institute of Staff and Organizational Development (2007), and the Melvin H. Miller Award for Outstanding Service from the Department of Communication, University of Wisconsin.
She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth, a master’s from the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
Dr. Yang succeeds Dr. Joyce Ester who has served as Normandale’s president since 2014 and has been appointed president of Governors State University in Illinois.
About Normandale:
Normandale Community College, located in Bloomington, Minn., is the largest two-year college within the Minnesota State system with over 14,000 enrolled students. Normandale offers over 70 degrees and certificates with a mission of cultivating a welcoming community, fostering every student’s talent and building an equitable world. For more information visit https://www.normandale.edu/
About Minnesota State
Minnesota State includes 26 community and technical colleges and seven state universities serving approximately 270,000 students. It is the fourth-largest system of two-year colleges and four-year universities in the United States.
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