Northern Kentucky University board chair, Rich Boehne, has announced his intention to recommend Gerald St. Amand as interim president as the search for Geoffrey Mearns replacement goes on.
Mearns announced he is assuming the presidency of Ball State University in Indiana and will be leaving NKU effective July 1.
St. Amand is well-known to the NKU community, having served as Dean of the Chase College of Law and as Vice President for University Advancement.
Boehne also announced 19 members of the presidential search committee chaired by Regent Norm Desmarais.
Boehne said the board is “close to selecting the best external firm to assist with the nationwide search. This firm will work closely with the search committee to identify, recruit, assess and ultimately recommend candidates to interview for the position.”
He said he would make the interim president recommendation to the board at its meeting on March 15.
In a message to the university community, Boehne wrote:
“If there is one trait that defines his (St. Amand’s) career path, it is dedication. He could have easily served five additional years in the United States Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps and retired as a colonel. However, Gerry saw an opportunity to make an impact, so he left the Army to join NKU as Chase Law Dean. So too could he have quietly retired after his tenure as Vice President for Advancement came to an end, but he chose to return to the faculty of Chase Law where he continued his brilliant career of service and education to our students and university.
“Gerry’s particular experience with our university, his familiarity with the strategies and culture that have come to define NKU, in addition to his proven and diverse leadership skills, make him my recommended candidate for this key positon.
“It’s also important to note that by considering Gerry, we allow our senior campus leaders to continue their demanding roles without having to take on additional duties during this transition. Bringing him on board to an already strong senior leadership staff will allow NKU to continue its trajectory as a university on the rise while we search for our next president.”
The members of the search committee are:
Normand Desmarais (Chair) – Regent, Chairman & Founding Partner, TiER1 Performance Solutions
David Bauer – Heavy Equipment/Grounds Operator, Operations and Maintenance
Martin Butler – Attorney, Strauss Troy (Chase ’77)
Garren Colvin – CEO, St. Elizabeth Healthcare (MBA ’96)
Brent Cooper – President & Owner, C-Forward Information Technology
Maureen Doyle – Chair & Associate Professor, Computer Science
Virginia Fox – Regent, Former Executive Director & CEO, Kentucky Educational Television
Rachel Green – Director, Human Relations & EEO, Human Resources
Francoise Kazimierczuk – Assistant Professor, Allied Health
Wendy Lea – CEO, Cintrifuse
Monica Molestina – Undergraduate student, Organizational Leadership & Spanish
Dannie Moore – Assistant Vice President, Student Inclusiveness
David Raska – Assistant Professor, Marketing, Economics & Sports Business
Cindy Reed – Dean, College of Education & Human Services
Dennis Repenning – Regent, Attorney, Dennis Repenning PSC (Chase ’79)
Lee Scheben – Regent, Executive Vice President, Heritage Bank (Chase ’91)
David Singleton – Associate Professor, Chase College of Law
Rebecca Walker – Acting Director, College of Informatics Advising
Matthew Zacate – Associate Professor, Physics & Geology
Follow presidenital search developments at at http://presidentialsearch.nku.edu/.
I would nominate him to serve as the next President of the university. He is a good man and a wonderful leader.