Larry Rideaux Jr., Ed.D., became president of Metropolitan Community College-Maple Woods on June 1, 2020, and serves as Interim President of the Penn Valley Campus starting August 14, 2023.
He also serves as Public Affairs/Governmental Relations Liaison for the college. In that role, he advocates for community colleges and forges relationships with federal, state and local lawmakers. The Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce selected him to join their representative group in Washington, D.C., to share needs and concerns with federal representatives.
Community involvement is a pillar of his leadership style. He is a member of the board of directors of the Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce, Gladstone Chamber of Commerce and the Clay and Platte County Economic Development Councils. He was awarded the administrators’ Northland Excellence in Education Award in April 2022.
A faculty member at Kansas State University, Dr. Rideaux is teaching educational leadership classes to students pursuing their Ed.D. degrees in the John E. Roueche Center for Community College Leadership.
Dr. Rideaux holds a B.S. in psychology from Lamar University in Beaumont, Texas; an M.A. in counseling from Prairie View A&M University; and an Ed.D. in educational administration from the University of Texas (Austin) Community College Leadership Program. He completed the Thomas Lakin Institute for Mentored Leadership and the American Association of Community Colleges’ (AACC) Future Leaders Institute.