Coval Appointed As BC3’s Ninth President

Megan M. Coval was introduced as the ninth president of Butler County Community College on Thursday.

BC3 trustees during their regular meeting today unanimously approved the appointment of Coval, who has led western Pennsylvania’s oldest community college as interim president since May.

Coval to begin acting as interim president as of May 2024 to succeed Ellwood City native Dr. Nick Neupauer, who had announced his retirement after 17 years as president in January.

Trustees’ responsibilities include selecting BC3’s president.

They voted 15-0 in support of a motion from the board’s personnel committee to designate Coval as the college’s chief executive officer. One year ago they also voted unanimously in choosing

“During the period that Megan has served as interim president, she has consistently impressed the trustees,” said Joseph E. Kubit, board chair. “There is truly no part of this role in which she did not shine. The board did not see any benefit to the college or to Megan by delaying offering her the position of president.”

Trustee Jennifer Pullar is chair of the board’s personnel committee,

“By promoting Megan now,” Pullar said, “we are sending a clear and intended message to Megan and to the entire college community that her leadership is trusted, valued and respected.”

Coval’s four-year contract begins March 20 with an annual base salary starting at $215,000.

“The faculty, staff and senior leadership at BC3 is a great team that has supported me through this transition,” Coval said. “I have enjoyed the variety of the position and the connections it provides. I’ve also had the chance to become even further integrated into our communities, which is something I have always loved.”

Megan M. Coval, third from left, introduces herself to new students during Welcome Day on Butler County Community College’s main campus in Butler Township, Butler County.

Hired by BC3 after 13 years in Washington, D.C.

Coval was a vice president or director in positions related to federal student financial aid policy for 13 years in Washington, D.C., before being hired by the college after a national search in September 2021 to serve as executive director of the BC3 Education Foundation and external relations.

“She has held leadership positions at the national level,” Kubit said. “She is a diligent and thoughtful leader. Faculty and staff respect her, as do the trustees. The board did not find Megan to be lacking in any respect and did not see any benefit in spending time or money on an external search when she has proven that she possesses all of the qualities we are seeking in a president.”

In 30 months directing the BC3 Education Foundation, Coval helped to raise nearly $7 million in private contributions toward construction of the Victor K. Phillips Nursing and Allied Health Building that opened in August 2023 on BC3’s main campus and secured a $500,000 federal grant to purchase equipment and technology for the facility.

“BC3 is the community’s college,” Pullar said. “Building strong partnerships between various stakeholders is crucial. Megan’s immersion into BC3 through its fundraising arm allowed her to fully embrace the college’s community collaborations.”

“Well-poised to navigate and lead BC3”

In addition to its main campus in Butler Township and BC3 @ Cranberry in Cranberry Township, each in Butler County, the college this spring offers associate degree or credit certificate programs in Armstrong, Jefferson, Lawrence and Mercer counties and online.

BC3 this spring enrolls more than 2,100 credit-seeking students representing 32 Pennsylvania counties. The college also serves nearly 16,000 adults annually in noncredit Workforce Development and Lifelong Learning courses in western Pennsylvania and represents, Coval said, “an anchor and a rock for our communities.”

Coval, 41, of Valencia, has worked only in higher education since the age of 24 and will become the first BC3 president hired whose background and experience favor government relations.

Her appointment also follows Gov. Josh Shapiro’s January 2024 announcement of a new blueprint for colleges and universities in Pennsylvania.

“With Megan’s experience in governmental relations at the state and national level,” Kubit said, “she is well-poised to navigate and lead BC3 in this new landscape in higher education.”

Coval was vice president for policy and federal relations at the National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators and, also in Washington, D.C., as director of government relations for the U.S. Department of Education’s Advisory Committee on Student Financial Assistance. She began her career in higher education as an admissions counselor at The Pennsylvania State University in State College.

Cost-cutting measure “example of her leadership”

BC3 under Coval’s interim presidency announced initial decisions intended to eliminate an annual operating deficit, including those about facilities proposed by Neupauer and expected to cut at least $530,000 from the next budget.

The college also decided this spring to cut tuition and fees by at least 45 percent for students taking BC3’s College Within the High School courses this fall in an effort to expand accessibility and increase revenue.

BC3 expects to save approximately $450,000 each year by ending in-person credit programs in August at BC3 @ LindenPointe in Hermitage, Mercer County, where enrollment has declined in the past decade.

“The recent cost-cutting measure taken by Coval and her Cabinet at the BC3 @ LindenPointe location is but just one example of her leadership,” Pullar said, “and ability to foretell the challenged financial landscape facing higher education.”

The college also intends to save $80,000 in rent annually by moving its additional location in Lawrence County to a less-expansive building in Shenango Township that will open in August.

Tuition and fees for a three-credit College Within the High School course this fall will be reduced from $435 to $225 for students in school districts in Butler County; and from $459 to $250 for students outside of Butler County.

Pennsylvania has more than 300 postsecondary and higher education institutions, according to the state Department of Education, “and many,” Coval said, “with declining enrollments.

“At this time we have to look inward, while remaining acutely aware of the outward,” Coval said. “We are continuing proactive steps to ensure long-term financial stability by focusing on strategic growth, operational efficiency and strengthening partnerships that support our mission to provide high-quality, affordable education that meets the needs of our students and communities.”

Coval earned a master of education degree in higher education administration with a policy focus from The Pennsylvania State University and bachelor of arts degree in political science with a communication arts minor from Allegheny College. She is a 2001 graduate of Butler Senior High School.

She serves the community as a board member of the Friends of Preston Park Foundation and as a member of the Butler County Growth Collaborative.

Coval and her husband, Nick, are the parents of two daughters, Annie, 8, and Gracie, 5.