Lawrence Todd

Lawrence Todd was appointed to the Northwest College Board of Trustees Subdistrict C, which covers Meeteese, in July, to serve out Nada Larsen’s unexpired term. She resigned when she moved away from Meeteese, making her ineligible to serve in the subdistrict. Todd is now running unopposed for a full term.

“I’ve got some big shoes here to fill in Meeteetse, which adds some extra pressure,” Todd said, referring to Larsen’s service.

Todd has an extensive career in academia. He earned a bachelor’s from the University of Wyoming and his master’s and Ph.D. from the University of New Mexico. He held a number of college teaching positions over 25 years, including an adjunct professor position at NWC from 2008 to 2012.

Though he’s since retired, he has continued his archeology research, spending summers in the Shoshone National Forest and winters in Ethiopia.

When he learned that Larsen was retiring, he said he pursued the position to “get back into the saddle, so to speak.”

He joins the board during a period when the college is facing a number of financial challenges stemming from declining enrollments and state funding. The board is in the process of developing a budget that will contend with a projected $3 million shortfall.

“Given the complexity of the situation we’re dealing with now … it’s the proverbial drinking out of the firehose,” Todd said.

Todd said he doesn’t see any upside to addressing the problem, and the last thing he wanted was to serve on a board just to make difficult cuts.

“There’s not a lot of fat to trim from the budget. We’ve gone beyond that point. Rather than cutting into the fat, it looks like we might need to cut into the flesh, which is painful,” Todd said.

He said the college faculty and staff are people dedicated to the success of the institution, which will help it weather these storms. He also said NWC’s location provides “education opportunities of this place are under-exploited.”

Situated next to Yellowstone National Park and the Shoshone National Forest, the area affords numerous research opportunities. Todd said he graduated from Meeteese High School and couldn’t wait to get away.

“It took me years of being away to realize just what a gem of a place this is,” he said.

If the college focuses on these assets, Todd said, it will find opportunities for growth and development.

“I’m interested in growth and development and getting enthusiastic about new, wonderful things that could happen,” he said.