Normandale Community College has a permanent president again, and it's someone the campus already knows. Dr. Pakou Yang had been interim president since June 2025. On April 22, 2026, the Minnesota State Board of Trustees named her the college's next president, effective immediately.
She's the first Hmong American to lead any college or university in the U.S. Minnesota State Chancellor Scott Olson called her "a strong leader who has successfully guided Normandale as interim president over the past 10 months." He also said she has "a proven track record of improving student success, increasing enrollment and retention."
Yang has spent more than 20 years in the Minnesota State system, most of them at Century College in White Bear Lake. She started there in 2003 as a full-time communication instructor. From 2008 to 2014 she was an academic dean. She then spent 4 years in the system office as director for P-20 and college readiness. In 2018 she went back to Century as vice president of student affairs and enrollment management. From 2021 to 2025 she was the college's provost and vice president of academic affairs, and then she came to Normandale.
She has a bachelor's degree from the University of Minnesota Duluth, a master's from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee and a doctorate from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
The City of Bloomington also noted the appointment in a June 30 community briefing. The city said the milestone reflects "a growing commitment to inclusive excellence across higher education." According to the city, she used her interim year to build relationships with students, faculty, staff and community partners.
The search is over and the interim tag is gone. Yang now runs the college.
