Former dean and instructor remembered as a role model

Former MHCC dean and instructor Robert Wesley died Nov. 8 due to lung cancer-related illness, the campus community learned this week.

Besides teaching, Wesley served as dean of the science division and as vice president of instructional services before he retired in the mid-1990s.

Current instructors and staff members said Wesley’s chief legacy was that he was student-oriented and always strived to exceed goals and standards.

Brenda Brady, IT project & portfolio manager for MHCC, worked alongside Wesley. “He was a very supportive person and kind of a mentor in some way,” she said. “He was all about helping people. We talk a lot about having the students at the center of our decisions, and he verbalized that a lot.”

Not only did Wesley have this effect on staff and his colleagues, but also on students. Karen Reynolds, now the MHCC environment health and safety manager, was once his student. She praised his teaching style. “He had this ability to be totally focused on you, he had a very good grasp of where you were at and what your potential was,” she said.

Wesley came to MHCC as a part-time instructor in the early 1970s when the college was beginning to grow. His work helped lift the reputation of the science department. According to an e-mail sent by a long-time friend and colleague, Gil Albelo, “the division gained a reputation for excellence in teaching, with a student-oriented faculty that performed beyond expectations.”

Albelo currently is a part-time instructor at MHCC and worked with Wesley for many years. He grew to admire not only his colleague’s career, but also his character.

“I admired Bob’s diligence, his commitment to excellence in the classroom, his creativity. He helped to create an environment in which instructors felt a need to go the extra mile in order to create the best learning environment you could,” Albelo said.

Looking back, Albelo stated, “The legacy he left is that there was an expectation that we would go beyond what was professionally required to improve the student’s learning.” Albelo further reflected on Wesley’s time here: “I personally had great admiration for Bob, I tried to emulate him and I strongly believe that it’s people like Bob Wesley who make institutions great,” he said.

Rick Bolesta, MHCC dean of science, remembers stories about Wesley: “I asked him once what his hobbies were and his answer was ‘Mt. Hood Community College.’ You could tell he cared about the college,” Bolesta said. He said Wesley impacted his life. “I’m a product of his leadership and his work ethics and standards. He was a role model for me. In a sense, I am here trying to pass that baton on and lead people by example. It’s important to maintain good quality and educational standards,” he said.

Albelo captured collective thoughts well in an e-mail sent to several staff members: “He (Wesley) represents the best of the second generation, those hired after the college was founded. Although he is gone, his legacy will live on at MHCC.”