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UB Council briefed on leadership searches
The two newest members of UB’s senior leadership team were introduced to members of the UB Council on Monday, and council members also received an update on the final search to complete the senior team, as well as two other high-level searches just getting under way.
Laura Hubbard, the new vice president for finance and administration, began her duties on Feb. 27. Nancy Wells, who officially will assume the position of vice president for development and alumni relations on March 12, also attended the meeting.
And the search for UB’s new provost is nearing completion, with the last finalists for the position visiting campus this week, President Satish K. Tripathi told council members.
One candidate visited UB on March 2, with three others set to visit this week, Tripathi said. (One candidate has since withdrawn from the search). He said he hoped the search process could be completed by the end of the month, with the appointment of a new provost being made early next month.
A new provost is expected to be on campus by July.
In addition, chairs have been named for committees searching for a new athletic director and dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Dennis Black, vice president for university life and services, and Francis M. Letro, a 1979 graduate of the UB Law School and vice chair of the UB Foundation board, are serving as co-chairs of the panel seeking a replacement for Warde Manuel, who is leaving UB to become athletic director at the University of Connecticut.
Council members Jonathan Dandes and Edmond Gicewicz have agreed to serve on the committee.
Tripathi said he expects the search for a new athletic director to take about eight weeks.
Chairing the search committee for a new engineering dean are E. Bruce Pitman, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and Venugopal (Venu) Govindaraju, SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Tripathi said the committee is expected to hold its first meeting later this week and meet another time or two during the semester.
The panel will develop its pool of candidates during the summer, with finalists expected to visit campus during early fall.
Tripathi also updated the council on his “20 cities in 20 months” tour to meet with UB alumni. About 200 alumni and friends attended a reception held last month at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., he said. A large crowd also is expected to attend a reception next month in Beijing, he added. Other stops on the tour during the next two months are scheduled for Bonita Springs, Fla.; Hong Kong; and Washington, D.C.
Monday’s council meeting began with a brief presentation by Ellie Fogarty, vice president of the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, who was visiting campus as part of UB’s decennial reaccreditation by Middle States.
Fogarty also conducted a public forum later that day for interested faculty, staff and students. For details on Fogarty’s visit to UB, read this story.
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