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An announcement is expected next week on the leadership of OTC's Richwood Valley campus.
Photo courtesy Ozarks Technical Community College
An announcement is expected next week on the leadership of OTC's Richwood Valley campus.

OTC Richwood Valley president to retire early

Posted online

Longtime Ozarks Technical Community College staffer and current Richwood Valley campus President Jeff Jochems accepted an early retirement incentive announced by the school this spring.

OTC spokesman Mark Miller said Jochems' last day with the school is June 30.

"He has been with the college since nearly the beginning," Miller said via email.

A 2015 honoree of Springfield Business Journal's Men of the Year, Jochems joined OTC in 1991 as its first director of financial aid. He took on the Richwood Valley president role in 2011 and also served as interim leader of the OTC Table Rock campus between July 2013 and November 2014.

“I look to provide guidance, vision and an atmosphere that encourages innovation and big thinking,” Jochems said in his 2015 SBJ profile.

Miller said Jochems is among 19 eligible employees who have taken the retirement incentive, a cost-cutting measure unveiled amid the coronavirus pandemic.

OTC currently is working out details of the leadership transition at Richwood Valley in Nixa, with an announcement expected next week, Miller said.

Retirement-eligible employees who take the deal can choose to accept payments of $500 annually for each year at OTC for a maximum of 20 years, or $10,000. Alternatively, they can accept payments for group health insurance for two years following retirement, which is equivalent to $13,600.

Eligible employees are those who have at least 25 years of service in the school's retirement system, as well as workers who are 60 years of age or older. In April, Miller said 10-12 employees were expected to take advantage of the incentive, which was brought on by reduced funding from the state.

The Springfield News-Leader was first to report on Jochems' retirement.

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