University of Arkansas System President Don Bobbitt and his chancellor search committee have selected three finalists for the University of Arkansas chancellor post and scheduled times for them to visit campus.
- October 6-7 – Dr. April Mason, provost and senior vice president, Kansas State University
- October 12-13 – Dr. Joseph E. Steinmetz, executive vice president and provost, Ohio State University
- October 14-15 – Dr. Jeffrey S. Vitter, provost and executive vice chancellor, University of Kansas
“I am very excited about introducing these individuals to the campus,” Bobbitt said in a news release. “I would like to thank the search committee for its advisory work with Greenwood/Asher to identify and provide feedback to me about the prospective candidates. I have personally met with each of these candidates and have gotten to know them, their leadership characteristics and their track record.”
The search comes in the wake of former Chancellor G. David Gearhart’s retirement in June. Dan Ferritor is interim chancellor.
A public forum will be held during the last day of each visit at 10:30 a.m. at the Faulkner Center for Performing Arts. Each candidate will speak and take questions from the audience. All are invited to provide comments via an online form.
The candidates will also spend time during their visits meeting with deans, faculty and student leaders, other administrators and the UA board.
Bobbitt will select a single finalist to recommend to the board for final approval.
The UA distributed brief bios of each of the candidates:
April Mason joined Kansas State in January 2010 as provost and senior vice president. She came to K-State from Colorado State University, where she had been dean of the College of Applied Human Sciences, now the College of Health and Human Sciences.
Mason is author or co-author of refereed publications, published research abstracts and book chapters and proceedings. Her research has been supported by more than $12 million in grants, and includes numerous grants from agencies within the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Joseph E. Steinmetz became Ohio State’s chief academic officer on July 1, 2013. As executive vice president and provost, he oversees the administration, coordination, and development of all academic functions of the university.
Dr. Steinmetz came to Ohio State in 2009, tapped to serve as vice provost for arts and sciences and executive dean of the then-new College of Arts and Sciences.
A nationally respected behavioral neuroscientist, Dr. Steinmetz was recognized in 1996 by the National Academy of Sciences for his contributions to the fields of experimental psychology and neuroscience. In 2012 he was named an AAAS Fellow.
Jeffrey Vitter is the provost and executive vice chancellor and the Roy A. Roberts Distinguished Professor at the University of Kansas. Before coming to KU, Dr. Vitter held a similar post at Texas A&M University.
His educational degrees include a B.S. with highest honors in mathematics in 1977 from the University of Notre Dame; a Ph.D. in computer science under Prof. Donald Knuth in 1980 from Stanford University; and an M.B.A. in 2002 from the Fuqua School of Business at Duke University.
Dr. Vitter’s research deals with the algorithmic aspects of processing, compressing, and communicating massive amounts of information. His Google Scholar h-index is over 65, and he is an ISI highly cited researcher.
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