A fixture in the California Community College system has announced his retirement after three years on the job.

Community College Chancellor Brice W. Harris is retiring in April, 2016, ending his 45-year career in higher education. Those years were spent devoted to increasing access to education and student success, and he is currently finding a replacement.

Harris was elected into the chancellor’s position back in 2012, replacing Jack Scott.

Before being instated as the community college chancellor, Harris served 16 years as chancellor of the Los Rios Community College District in the Sacramento region. He was also president of Fresno City College and a faculty member and vice chancellor in the Kansas City, Missouri community college system.

His goals throughout his career have consistently been to improve student success and access in American community colleges. With Los Rios, he was responsible for leading successful initiatives that improved student success. Harris expanded access for thousands of students by overseeing the establishment of the district’s fourth college, Folsom Lake. He also developed five additional educational centers in underserved areas of the region.

Harris’ biography page on californiacommunitycollege.edu, states his feelings on being chancellor,

“Representing 113 colleges and more than 2 million students has been a dream job,” Harris said in his bio. “No matter where I went as your chancellor I was greeted by people who sang your praises … no one ever said they received anything other than a great education at one of our colleges.”