Edward Serna
The University of Arkansas System announced Thursday the appointment of Edward Serna as interim chancellor at the University of Arkansas at Fort Smith.
He will succeed Paul Beran, who is leaving on Aug. 31, after serving as chancellor for more than 12 years, to become executive director and CEO of the South Dakota Higher Education Board of Regents.
Serna is chief of staff and vice chancellor for strategic initiatives at UAFS.
The UA System said it’s launching a national search for Beran’s permanent replacement immediately.
Before joining UAFS, Serna spent 15 years as a management consultant and program manager for both commercial and government organizations. He was a program manager in unmanned aircraft systems for Science & Engineering Services in Huntsville, Alabama, and spent seven years as a strategy and organization associate at Booz Allen Hamilton, where he served as a consultant for the U.S. Army and NASA.
Serna began teaching as an adjunct instructor in 2007. He joined UAFS in 2015 after a year as an assistant professor of management at Athens State University.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Winthrop University, a master’s degree in industrial management from Clemson University, a master’s degree in information systems from Auburn University and a doctorate from the University of Alabama. Serna was also recognized as an Outstanding Doctoral Student by the University of Alabama’s Higher Education Administration program, and he is a 2017 graduate of Leadership Arkansas.
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