Owens Community College has named Dr. Teddy Farias as its next dean of the School of Nursing and Health Professions, completing a national search, the college announced in an Oct. 29 news release. Farias started at the college, which serves the Toledo area from its Perrysburg-area campus, on Monday, Oct. 26.
“There’s a lot of great things going on here,” Farias said in the Owens Community College release. “The leadership is great. This facility (Healthcare Education Center) is state-of-the-art as compared to other facilities. It has all of the allied health programs along with nursing, which a lot of other places don’t have.”
Farias comes to Owens from San Jacinto College in Houston, Texas, where he served as dean of health and natural sciences for eight years, the college said. He previously served as dean of health sciences at the Wichita State University Campus of Applied Sciences and Technology in Kansas and at San Juan College in Farmington, New Mexico, and as department chair of health sciences at Kaplan University in Cedar Falls, Iowa.
He replaces Cathy Ford, who retired from Owens in July 2025 after 43 years at the college, according to the release. Dr. Michael Sander, dean of liberal arts, served as interim dean during the search.
“Dr. Farias stood out for the breadth of experience he brings to this role in clinical practice, health professions education, higher education leadership and workforce development,” Dr. Denise Smith, provost and vice president of academic affairs, said in the Owens release.
The school he now leads is anchored by the college’s $27.8 million Healthcare Education Center, opened in 2025, which houses all 11 health care disciplines at Owens, the release said. Registered Nursing was the college’s top enrolled program in the fall 2026 semester, with 518 students, and four of Owens’ top 10 career-focused programs sit in the school, including Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Radiologic Technology and Physical Therapy Assistant.
Owens graduates fill a critical pipeline to regional employers including ProMedica, Mercy Health and Blanchard Valley Health, the college said, and its nursing graduates have long ranked among the best in northwest Ohio on state licensing pass rates. Farias said in the release that his first priority is listening: “The key thing is listening and not coming in and making change for the sake of change.”
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