Dr. Tawny Dotson has served as President of Yuba College since July of 2020. She began her career as an active duty Air Force Officer at Beale Air Force Base. After transitioning off active duty, Tawny worked at post-secondary education institutions in Oklahoma, Washington, and California. She has served as a guest lecturer and adjunct faculty in Marketing, Photography, Communication Studies, and College Success.
Her career includes serving as the Director, Special Assistant to the President, Chief of Staff, and Vice President level before her role at YC.
Dr. Dotson holds a BA from Washington State University, an MA from the University of Missouri, and her EdD from Oregon State University in Community College Leadership.
She is a graduate of the Aspen Institute Rising Presidents Fellowship, the University of California Davis's Wheelhouse Institute, and the Community College League for California (The League) Vineyard Symposium. She serves as co-chair on the League's CEO Funding Policies Task Force, and as vice chair of the California Community College Athletics Association Board. She was selected to join the American Association of Community Colleges' Small and Rural Colleges Commission in 2024 and has served as vice chair (2022-23) and chair (2023-24) of accreditation visits for the Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges (ACCJC).
Dotson is a retired Lieutenant Colonel, having served for 23 years in the United States Air Force, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard. Tawny is an active member of the community. She’s a two-time past Rotary club president, a Paul Harris Fellow, and a member of the Rotary Club of Marysville, Calif. She’s an alumna of the Chi Omega Fraternity and a past board member for the Boys & Girls Clubs of South Puget Sound.
She’s currently a member of the City of Lincoln’s Parks and Recreation Committee, serves on the Yuba-Sutter Economic Development Corporation’s Business Consortium, is a board member for the North Central Counties Consortium’s Workforce Development Board, and is the executive committee chair of the North Central Adult Education Consortium.