President's Office

Dr. Gullickson was appointed the first woman President of Germanna Community College, beginning July 1, 2017. She previously held leadership positions with the Colorado Department of Higher Education and Community College System, the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system and Community Colleges of Spokane.

Germanna Community College is the fifth largest community college in Virginia, serving approximately 12,300 students annually with more than 800 full and part-time employees in suburban and rural regions, larger in total land area than the state of Delaware.  Through its multi campuses and sites, the college has grown in overall enrollment for the last four years by nearly 16% with a 25% increase in African American enrollment, one of few community colleges in the country to grow. Germanna has been recognized twice as one of the top 150 colleges in the country by the Aspen Institute as well as achieving high national rankings by WalletHub.  The Aspen Institute, Johns Hopkins University and the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond have examined its best practices and the college has been featured in several national publications and podcasts.  The college budget is roughly $50,000,000 annually.

Since becoming President of Germanna, Dr. Gullickson worked with school divisions to improve education and services by creating single point-of-contact, concierge services for each division. Additionally, Germanna has increased partnership activity with county and city governments to broaden services and academic offerings to underserved geographic areas, resulting in the establishment of a Real Estate Foundation to oversee land holdings in Stafford County and a unique joint-use agreement among Culpeper County Schools, Culpeper County and Germanna. She was co-chair of the Virginia Community Colleges System’s (VCCS) Applying the Community College Mission to Virginia’s 21st Century Needs Taskforce, producing a range of enrollment and retention strategies for Virginia. Along with another VCCS President, she co-chaired the On-Boarding Redesign Taskforce to simplify the student enrollment process.

While President, Germanna was twice named one of the top 150 community colleges in the country by the Aspen Institute and the top community college in Virginia and 24th in the country in terms of career outcomes by the personal finance website, Wallet Hub. In 2019, the National Security Agency and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security designated Germanna as a National Center of Academic Excellence in Cyber Defense Education, one of Virginia’s relatively few such institutions.  In 2020, Germanna was awarded a National Science Foundation grant to expand pathways into the geospatial and unmanned aircraft systems technician workforce in partnership with other Virginia universities and the Virginia Space Grant Consortium. The college received a Federal Title III grant in 2022 to strengthen STEM achievement among high-risk students. 

Dr. Gullickson serves on the boards of the Fredericksburg Regional Alliance, Community Foundation of the Rappahannock River Region, Smart Beginnings of the Rappahannock Area, Central Virginia Partnership for Economic Development, and Culpeper Career Partners. In 2022, she was named to the Board of Visitors for Marine Corps University.  She has been a featured keynote speaker for various events around the country and is a member of Phi Kappa Phi and Gamma Sigma Delta Honorary Scholastic Societies. She has been recognized by the Boys and Girls Clubs of America with a National Service to Youth award. She recently received the Virginia Business Women in Leadership Award, presented by the Virginia Business Magazine, one of 42 women recognized from across the Commonwealth.  

Dr. Gullickson holds a Doctor of Leadership and Policy in Higher Education degree from the University of Minnesota, a Master of Science degree in Rural Sociology and Planning from South Dakota State University and she completed the Lean Six Sigma Enterprise certification.

She is most proud to be a wife and a mother to three, adult children, two of whom live in Virginia and have served their country as an Army JAG and as a Navy Nuclear Reactor Operator and Reactor Technician.  Her husband is a US Navy veteran, having served aboard the USS New Jersey battleship.