In March 1968, Johnson died. He was succeeded on an interim basis by William S. Scott until the end of June. On July 1, 1968, Dr. Gwendel A. "Gwen" Nelson was appointed president of the college by the Board of Trustees. Immediately, Nelson began a far-reaching program of expansion and upgrades. When he arrived at the college, it owned no property (the land on which the buildings stood was rented from the school district), and its program offerings were limited. During his tenure, which lasted until 1987, Nelson would be instrumental in land negotiations with the school board, resulting in the college's ownership of all of its main campus and the adjacent old high school. His leadership resulted in great expansion of academic programs, including upgrading the vocational school, and he would oversee the construction of six new buildings, including the college's first dormitories.