Dr. Richard L. Dawe became the president of Ozarka College on July 1, 2009. Previously, he served as Vice Chancellor of the Ventura County Community College District in Ventura California. VCCCD is comprised of three state colleges serving more than 36,000 students. Other positions in higher education included Dean of Work Education at College of the Ozarks, a four year private college in Branson, Missouri; and Assistant Professor of Budget and Public Policy at the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. Dr. Dawe also served as a naval aviator in the United States Navy, retiring at the rank of captain. During his navy career he also served as deputy, and then director of a $9.4B federal government working capital fund.

He holds a Ph.D. in Public Policy and Administration from Saint Louis University at St. Louis, Missouri; Master of Science degree in Financial Management from the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California; and, a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from Southern Illinois University at Carbondale, Illinois.

Dr. Dawe served on the Saint Louis University - Parks College, Engineering, Aviation and Technology Graduate Advisory Board; and the Melbourne Airport Commission. He also served on the governor appointed, Arkansas Emergency Response Commission, as the President of the Arkansas Aviation Historical Society Board and currently serves as a commissioner on the Arkansas Department of Aeronautics.

He and his wife, Chris, make their home in Melbourne, Arkansas. They have two grown children, Richard Dawe Jr. and Stephanie Shine, and their grandchildren, Isabella Dawe and Savannah and Jackson Shine.