DMACC sees grown during Denson’s tenure

Rob Denson, DMACC President for 22 years, will be retiring from his position effective December 30, 2025. The Iowa native took the position on November 1, 2003, after the DMACC Board reached out to him about the position as he was working as President of Northeast Iowa Community College.

Denson said the decision to retire, though not easy, is still the right one. The 78-year-old said he is ready to experience life with his wife, Pat. The two are ready to travel around the country and plan to keep Ankeny as their home.

Denson grew up in Homestead, Iowa, attending a one-room school during his early education. As a college student, he drove a semi truck to pay for tuition, an activity he still holds a passion for today, driving the official DMACC semi in parades around the state.

Before becoming the president of DMACC, Denson practiced law for 18 years as an attorney. He also spent five and a half years as president of Northeast Iowa Community College.

DMACC has seen much growth during Denson’s time. Today, the college has a $141 million annual budget and the lowest tuition fees of any college or university in the state. Here is a list of some of the expansions during Denson’s time at DMACC:

• Urban Campus expansion (2005)
• New Health Sciences Building (2005)
• The FFA Enrichment Center (2010)
• Partnership with TSA to provide security training (2011)
• Iowa Culinary Building renovation (2016)
• Renovated Building 5 Student Center and Trail Point facilities (2016-2017)
• Ames Hunziker opens, providing general education options (2005) 
• Perry Van Kirk brings community college to Perry (2011)
• Southridge, with specialized programs, opens its doors (2013)
• Evelyn K. Davis Center opens, providing job training and career services (2013)
• Capitol Center opens, offering nursing and education courses (2017)
• Templeton location opened, offering general education (2022)

DMACC under Denson has secured partnerships with major business leaders such as Intel, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, and even the TSA (Transportation Security Agency), which Denson said he is particularly proud of. DMACC has a program specific to the TSA run by the Criminal Justice program.

Denson said that the Culinary Program is another major success for DMACC.  Recently, the program celebrated 40 years of a French chef exchange program, where DMACC students are sent to France to practice culinary art skills in one of the most prestigious culinary countries in the world. Denson said that DMACC has earned the French Order of Agricultural Merit from the French government due to the school’s culinary programs, citing that as one of the most memorable moments during his tenure with the college.

Denson has consistently found himself on the front pages of The Campus Chronicle throughout his time as president. He was offered the position after the previous president, David England, was arrested and charged with conspiracy to manufacture and deliver marijuana out of his home and was subsequently removed from his position on March 12, 2003, forcing the DMACC board to swiftly find a replacement.  On September 17, 2003, The Chronicle featured an article introducing DMACC students to Denson.

Weeks later, another story detailed Denson’s “whirlwind tour,” in which he visited the then-six DMACC campuses over the course of 12 hours.

Not long after he visited all the DMACC campuses, he made a commitment to the expansion of the Ankeny campus. An $8.6 million expansion took place, adding over 300 new parking spaces as well as expanding multiple buildings, adding more classrooms.

In February of 2007, The Chronicle reported a record enrollment of 11,664 students. At the time, Denson said, “More and more students are finding out that DMACC offers a great product that helps them achieve their career goal.”

During the fallout of the 2008 recession, The Chronicle reported that DMACC had been finding new ways to cut costs, $1.4 million to be exact.  This was done to keep the school as affordable for students as possible.

Denson said at the time, “We are trying to save costs for the students while being able to keep the school functioning as well.”

Denson had his own salary frozen for the year to save money for the college.

The college experienced challenges in the 2010s. In 2014, DMACC secured a partnership with the YMCA to build a new $15 million facility on the Ankeny campus, proposing free membership for DMACC employees and students.

“We are going to redesign the whole Student Activities Building. We will have a food court, a nice coffee shop, expand the bookstore, more student office space, student activity space, lounges, computer labs, as well as at least eight lanes of swimming and everything that the Y has,” Denson said.

Although a recreation center was built, the deal with the YMCA fell through in 2015, with The Chronicle reporting that DMACC and the YMCA couldn’t make the numbers work.

On September 30, 2015, The Chronicle reported that a 6 percent drop in enrollment resulted in a 2.9 percent increase in tuition. On top of these issues, some classes were at risk of cancellation due to a lack of students registering for classes.

2016 saw an end to this stagnation. Building 5, the Student Center, opened its doors during the fall semester, followed by the new recreation center, Trail Point.

“The new student center will be a giant benefit to the student life of all of our Ankeny Students and greatly improve their total campus experience,” Denson said.

In January 2017, President Trump signed an immigration ban preventing people from Iraq, Syria, Iran, Sudan, Libya, Yemen, and Somalia from entering the country. In response, Denson sent an email to all DMACC students that said, “Our mission is to provide quality, affordable, student-centered education and training designed to empower all students in their pursuit of life’s opportunities and career goals. We embrace students from around the world to become part of the DMACC community as we strive to fulfill our mission.”

In November of 2024, Denson was awarded the The Immigrant Entrepreneurs Summit “Karen L. Evans Immigrant Champion Award,” acknowledging his support for immigrants in the community.

The Chronicle reached out to faculty to discuss Denson’s legacy.

Bethany Sweeney, the Pathway Academic Chair of Education, Communication, and Humanities and Study Abroad Coordinator, provided statements and opinions of the DMACC College Council members, some students, and herself.

One current criticism of Denson revolves around an issue faced by many colleges in today’s political climate.

Some faculty members believe that a lack of support for marginalized students harms the student body as a whole. College presidents of today are commonly forced into a position where they must decide between government funding and providing support to disadvantaged students.  

Cody Chesmore, an English professor at the Boone Campus, said, “If the next president does not prioritize these ideals, we will see a continuation of students suffering, education being dismantled with no protest, and destruction of the core concepts of democracy in education.”

Sweeney said, “In his dedication to DMACC as a whole, President Denson is willing to make sacrifices that will have an outsized impact on specific student groups to preserve the institution, its funding, and its political standing. Personally, I believe that such compromises run the risk of ultimately harming the integrity of the institution and diminishing its educational and moral authority.”

The College Council outlined what they wish to see in the new president.

The council stated they want a leader who will defend students, balance education and politics, and one who is open and responsive to staff.

They said they wish for the next president to support the continuation of the College Council to allow faculty, staff, and student representation in decision-making.

Sweeney said she hopes for a president with experience in the education field, similar to the presidents she previously worked under at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and the University of California, Irvine. Sweeney said the presidents of those universities often come from the staff within those universities, rather than businessmen and women, which is a practice becoming more common in universities and colleges around the country.

As for Denson, the College Council makes its appreciation for him known. He was a major factor in the creation of the College Council itself and has made many notable impacts on the college. Though his methods haven’t always been popular amongst everyone, many agree that Denson has never put DMACC second.  Sweeney said that Denson has found major successes in his time at the school, lowering tuition, bringing in unique programs, and expanding the success of preexisting programs.

Sweeney said she believes that his legacy will be a positive one after the dust settles.  The funding opportunities he’s provided for the school have changed its landscape, not to mention its physical landscape changing with renovations and construction projects.

It’s known that he is very proud of how he handled communications throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, keeping the school very well-connected through his weekly messages.

His approachability has always been something that students and staff have appreciated. Danielle Forkner, a student of the Urban Campus and President of the DMACC Honors Advisory Board, said, “Thank you, President Denson, for always going to events for us students and being supportive of us! You are amazing!”

Denson said he is very proud of his involvement in the DMACC community, having gone to countless concerts, plays, banquets, and other school functions. He urges the incoming president to do something similar.

Denson and the College Council agree that students need to be the primary focus of his replacement.  His biggest piece of advice to this unknown replacement is to “get out and about,” visiting all of the campuses connected to DMACC, from Perry to Templeton.

This advice mirrors his first day on the job when he made his whirlwind tour of the six campuses. At the time, Denson said, “My job is to serve you. You don’t work for me, I work for you.”