PIQUA — Edison State Community College Board of Trustee member Thomas P. Milligan successfully defended his doctoral dissertation on April 26 at Franklin University.
“Dr. Milligan is the model of a lifelong learner as demonstrated by his commitment to blending his intellect and experience to yield timely and practical doctoral research results,” said Edison State President Dr. Doreen Larson.
Milligan’s Doctor of Business Administration (DBA) Defense covered “Context and Culture: A Phenomenological Study of Blue-Collar Workers in Two Multi-Cultural Workplaces.” The committee included Dr. Bora Pajo, committee chair; Dr. John Nadalin, committee member; and Dr. Kenneth Knox, committee member.
A member of the Edison State Board of Trustees since 1999 and chair from 2017 to 2019, Milligan’s stewardship on the board includes testifying before the Ohio senate education committee on the importance of public and private alliances and their role in enhancing the quality of community college education throughout Ohio. He played a significant role in the creation of partnerships during The Campaign for Edison State Community College, which funded most of the cost to build the 35,000-square-foot Emerson Center at the Piqua Campus.
The president, founder, and owner of Western Ohio Cut Stone in Sidney since 1995, Milligan is an equity partner in two other local businesses serving the construction and land development sectors. In 2009, he was chosen to receive the Excellence in Trusteeship Award sponsored by the Ohio Association of Community Colleges (OACC); in 2021, he received the OACC’s Trustee Leadership Award for the Central Region. Dr. Milligan was also selected for the Sidney-Shelby County Chamber of Commerce Zenith Award in 2020.
“Dr. Milligan is a long-serving Trustee of Edison State, generously sharing his leadership skills and community connections in service to all things ‘education.’ I know he will inspire Edison State employees and students to continue to study, research, and ask questions throughout their lives,” said Larson.
