Dr. June Darling appointed by Governor Christine Gregoire to WVC Board of Trustees

Dr. June Darling of Cashmere has been appointed by Governor Christine Gregoire to a five-year term on the Wenatchee Valley College Board of Trustees, starting Dec. 3. She replaces Kris Pomianek, who completed her second five-year term on the board in September.

Darling is founder and president of Summit Group Resources, a personal and professional executive coaching company. She served on the WVC Foundation Board from 2001-2006, including two years as president, and received the Harvey Award for outstanding service to the college.

“The community college idea of open access is crucial to people living in a democracy and in our economic system. It’s an open door to opportunity that reflects what we stand for as Americans,” she said. “Education is central to our personal and societal well-being. That’s a concept that I’ve been committed to all my life.”

Darling earned a Ph.D. in education with a dissertation and studies focused on program improvement and evaluation. Her master’s research was done in reading comprehension and cognition, and her bachelor’s degree is in religion and philosophy with a minor in psychology. She is certified by The Academy for Coach Training.

Before starting her coaching company, she was an officer in the U.S. Army, a small business owner, and a middle school teacher. She has been a member of an international positive psychology mastermind group and the International Coaching Federation. She is presently the vice-president of Wenatchee Rotary and a visioning and leadership facilitator for Rotary at the district level.

Darling has received special training in coaching, facilitation, human development, emotional intelligence, conflict resolution, leadership, high-performance teaming, personal effectiveness, positive psychology and communications.

She is the author of Mind-Bending Chats with Great Thinkers and a self-coaching, online book, Becoming Artists of Life. She writes a regular coaching column for the local magazine, The Good Life.

“WVC is a tremendous resource I’m not sure we always fully appreciate. I’ve taken classes, and my daughter-in-law recently received her AA there. I’ve met some incredibly brilliant minds with a passion for both their subjects and the success of their students. I’ve talked to people with unbelievable stories of triumph over adversity.

“We need to grasp the huge impact of the college not only on individuals, but on our larger community. If we want North Central Washington to flourish, then we want Wenatchee Valley College to thrive.

“I want to partner with others who understand how strongly we are connected - how important education is to all of us. My goal is to ensure a robust Wenatchee Valley College for the good of us all.”