R. Thomas Flynn (born January 29, 1938 ) is an American college administrator who served as president of

Monroe Community College Monroe Community College (MCC) is a public community college in Monroe County, New York. It is part of the State University of New York. The college has two campuses; the main campus in the town of Brighton, and the Downtown Campus in the City ...

(MCC) in

Rochester, New York Rochester is a city in and the county seat, seat of government of Monroe County, New York, United States. It is the List of municipalities in New York, fourth-most populous city and 10th most-populated municipality in New York, with a populati ...

. The R. Thomas Flynn Campus Center on the MCC campus is named in his honor.

Early life and education

Flynn was born in Bluffs, Illinois to factory workers Bernard and Myrtle Flynn. He grew up in nearby

Canton, Illinois Canton is the largest city in Fulton County, Illinois, United States. The population was 13,242 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, down from 14,704 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. The Canton Micropolitan Statistical Ar ...

. Flynn was a good baseball and basketball player and earned a scholarship to

Bradley University Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,200 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in fiv ...

; he was injured and lost the scholarship. Flynn received a bachelor's degree from

MacMurray College MacMurray College was a private college in Jacksonville, Illinois, United States. Its enrollment in fall 2015 was 570. Founded in 1846, the college closed in May 2020. History Although founded in 1846 by a group of Methodist clergymen as the ...

Jacksonville, Illinois Jacksonville is a city and the county seat of Morgan County, Illinois, United States. The population was 17,616 at the 2020 census, down from 19,446 in 2010. It is home to Illinois College, Illinois School for the Deaf, and the Illinois Sc ...

and a master's in education from the

University of Montana The University of Montana (UM) is a public research university in Missoula, Montana, United States. UM is a flagship institution of the Montana University System and its second largest campus. Fall 2024 saw total enrollment hit 10,811, marki ...

Career

Flynn taught mathematics for one year at St Andrew's School in

Boca Raton, Florida Boca Raton ( ; ) is a city in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. The population was 97,422 in the 2020 United States census, 2020 census and it ranked as the 23rd-largest city in Florida in 2022. Many people with a Boca Raton Address, ...

before joining

Rutgers University Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a Public university, public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's C ...

as assistant dean of student services between 1965 and 1969. He was dean of student services at Ocean Community College 1969–1974. In 1974, he joined Monroe Community College as vice president of student services, a post he held for 20 years. He then became vice president of administrative and student services in 1994. He was made interim president in 1999 and president of the college in 2000. Flynn worked with the

University at Albany, SUNY The State University of New York at Albany (University at Albany, UAlbany, or SUNY Albany) is a Public university, public research university in Albany, New York, United States. Founded in 1844, it is one of four "university centers" of the St ...

to establish a Joint Admission Program that guarantees MCC students admission to SUNY as juniors after completing their two years of study at MCC. He collaborated with the

Rochester Institute of Technology The Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) is a private university, private research university in Henrietta, New York, a suburb of Rochester, New York, Rochester. It was founded in 1829. It is one of only two institute of technology, institut ...

on the Rochester Biomedical Experience, a program to increase minority participation in biomedical-related fields. After the terrorist attacks of

September 11, 2001 The September 11 attacks, also known as 9/11, were four coordinated Islamist terrorist suicide attacks by al-Qaeda against the United States in 2001. Nineteen terrorists hijacked four commercial airliners, crashing the first two into ...

, Flynn created the Homeland Security Management Institute, which helps businesses and government agencies prepare for emergencies. On September 15, 2007, Flynn was a charter signatory of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, which commits colleges and universities to take steps to reduce

global warming Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes ...

. He retired in 2008.

Awards

Flynn received the first President of the Year Award from the American Student Association of Community Colleges. In 2008, he was awarded

Phi Theta Kappa Phi Theta Kappa ( or PTK) is an honor society for students of associate degree-granting colleges. Its headquarters are in Jackson, Mississippi and it has more than 4.3 million members in nearly 1,300 chapters in eleven nations. History Phi The ...

International Honor Society's 2008 Michael Bennett Lifetime Achievement Award. The R. Thomas Flynn Campus Center on the MCC campus, built during his tenure, is named in his honor.

Personal life

Flynn married Kate Niebling on June 15, 1963. They have one son and one daughter.

References

External links

Monroe Community College
{{DEFAULTSORT:Flynn, R Thomas Heads of universities and colleges in the United States MacMurray College alumni University of Montana alumni 1938 births Living people People from Canton, Illinois People from Scott County, Illinois Rutgers University faculty People from Mendon, New York