Office Hours with John Gardner
In this discussion, West shares that “innovation is at the heart of ministry” and the connections between ministry and college presidency. Listen to how he helped his college redefine goals, reclaim its mission, and articulate a reason for being.
Guest Bio
J. Cameron West (Cam) has served as the 14th President of Huntingdon College, Montgomery, Alabama, since June 1, 2003. Prior to assuming the Huntingdon presidency, he was a vice president and dean at Brevard College, Brevard, North Carolina, from 1999-2003. He was a parish minister from 1978 to 1999 in United Methodist congregations across his native North Carolina and was the Bishop’s Ecumenical Officer in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church from 1996 – 1999.
West has served on the Executive Committee of the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU), has twice chaired the Board of Directors of the Alabama Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (AAICU), and has chaired the Presidents Council of the NCAA Division III USA South Athletic Conference. An ordained Elder of the United Methodist Church, West was presented the Francis Asbury Award in 2013 by the Alabama – West Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church for leadership excellence in United Methodist higher education. He is a former member of the University Senate of the United Methodist Church and an emeritus member of the Duke University Divinity School Board of Visitors.
West earned the Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from the University of North Carolina – Chapel Hill in 1972 (Phi Beta Kappa, North Carolina Fellow); the Master of Divinity cum laude from Yale University Divinity School in 1978 (Rockefeller Brothers Fellow); and the Master of Theology from Duke University Divinity School in 1986, where his thesis treated the preaching of John Wesley.
