Photo: Former DMACC Carroll Campus Provost Jim Knott (back row, left to right) poses with his family in a photo taken several years ago. Jim’s late wife, Marg,e is in the front row, second from left. Other Knott family members include: (front row, left to right) Jennifer Pottebaum, Marge, Lori Cooper and Jeff Knott. (Back row, left to right), Jim, Bradley Knott, Ketsie Wilkins and Doug Knott. Jim and Marge’s first child, Bud, passed away in 1981.
A Carroll family with a long-history of unwavering support to the Carroll area will be honored by having the newly constructed multi-purpose commons area at Des Moines Area Community College’s (DMACC) Carroll Campus named after them. Both Jim Knott and his late wife, Marjorie (Marge), are well-known for the care and support they have provided to the region. Jim has served as an instructor and head of the English Department at Carroll High School, was Provost/Dean of the DMACC Carroll Campus until June 30, 2006 and became a member of the DMACC Board of Trustees that same year, still serving to this day. Marge cared for area residents as a nurse at St. Anthony Regional Hospital and continued in her nursing career for more than 60 years, 50 of those at St. Anthony. The Knotts, their family and friends have also made a generous $75,000 donation to the renovation project. “One of the first people I met when I came to DMACC in 2003 was Jim Knott,” says DMACC President, Rob Denson. “Jim’s service to DMACC and the greater Carroll community has been unwavering and exemplary. He wants only one thing for Carroll area students, and that is excellence.” Denson adds that Knott understood having a community college in Carroll was of great importance and he has been dedicated to making it a standout center. “The donors who contributed toward this designation want everyone to know, every time they enter the building, what an asset Jim and Marge have been, and for all future DMACC students and community members to enjoy this facility in their name.” The Knott’s children, Ketsie Wilkins, Doug Knott and Bradley Knott say nothing will make their father more proud than seeing both of their names, as partners, on this space and they hope there will be many years of civil discussion and community enjoyment as the center continues to grow. The new 11,700 square-foot, $4.2 million addition also includes a welding lab and an applied engineering lab with anticipated completion in August of this year.
