Dr. Mark David La Branche was appointed the twenty-seventh president of Louisburg College on November 21, 2008; his term began on January 1, 2009. He served most recently as senior vice president and dean of the chapel at Huntingdon College in Montgomery, Alabama.

Upon assuming the presidency, La Branche immediately focused on navigating the institution to reaffirmation of its accreditation and beyond the sanction of probation imposed by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. On December 5, 2009, the Commission voted to remove the sanction of probation and to reaffirm the accreditation of the College through 2016. The College is now well on its way to establishing strategic priorities that will lead to greater stability and the fulfillment of its promise as a church-related institution of higher education.

La Branche’s previous experience includes eighteen years in parish ministry, serving a number of appointments in the Alabama-West Florida (AWF) Conference of the United Methodist Church. Before entering the ordained ministry, he spent ten years in the health field, eight of those years as a neonatal respiratory therapist. He was elected to the Montgomery County Board of Education in November 2000 and was chosen by the Board to be its chair in January 2005. He has served as president of numerous non-profit boards, including Montgomery Habitat for Humanity, the Family Sunshine Center for Domestic Violence Prevention, Neighbors Who Care Victim Services, and served as co-founder and president of both the Montgomery Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy and the Alabama Campaign to Prevent Teen Pregnancy. He has led a number of United Methodist Volunteers in Mission teams to Russia, Jamaica, and Costa Rica. He served as chair of the Montgomery District Committee on Ministry, on the AWF Board of Ordained Ministry, and as chair of the AWF Conference Committee on Resolutions and Petitions.

While at Huntingdon College, La Branche established the Bishop Paul A. Duffey Institute for Church Leadership, designed and developed the Rural Leadership Institute for the training of rural church leaders, and led the Advancement Department to unprecedented success in fundraising.

He received his doctor of ministry from Boston University, his master of divinity from Emory University in Atlanta, his bachelor of arts in philosophy from the University of South Alabama, and his certificate in respiratory therapy from Pensacola Jr. College in Pensacola, Florida.

He is married to Mona Maxwell La Branche. They have two children and one grandchild. He is a member of the Louisburg United Methodist Church, Louisburg Lions Club, and served as chairman for the Franklin County United Way Campaign. He also serves as a member of the Board of Institutions for the North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church.