Patrick Bettencourt is Vice President of Instruction at Modesto Junior College where
he has been employed for nearly 25 years and has served in his current position since
June 2024. First teaching English part-time, then full-time, he has always held an
interest in alternative and supplemental learning outside the classroom and an enduring
desire to serve those who have been given unfortunate labels by the social systems
meant to support us.
These values drew him to serve as Writing Center Director where he developed an interest in leadership which led to his first administrative assignment as interim Dean. Touring Modesto Junior College as Dean of Literature and Language Arts, then of Library, then of Allied Health and Family and Consumer Sciences, then of Physical, Recreation, and Health Education, to his last dean assignment as Dean of Instruction has kept Patrick’s career interests fresh and have provided him a unique, global perspective on most instructional areas at Modesto Junior College. As Dean of Instruction, Patrick worked with the Online Education and Research Departments, served as administrative lead of the MJC Libraries, and had responsibilities for assisting the Instruction Division with Guided Pathways, Zero Textbook Cost, Accreditation, and Credit for Prior Learning initiatives, and more.
As Vice President, what excites Patrick is the ability to facilitate greater opportunities for students in Modesto, for those previously labelled underserved, who, when given the right opportunities in the right conditions, will with their resilience, rise to the level of any Harvard graduate.
A professional achievement that Patrick is most proud of is serving as the Dean of Allied Health when Modesto Junior College was designated as one of the first two California Community Colleges to award the baccalaureate degree in Respiratory Care. This advanced degree brings higher education to students in Modesto for the lowest cost available in California.
Patrick enjoys Central Valley living, where he was born, and continues to live a rural life in Turlock with his wife; son and daughter; Lucy the dog; Katniss, Jess, and Rory the cats; and four goats and twelve chickens.
