ISU Names Presidential Finalists
Indiana State University has announced the two finalists to become the school’s 12th president. The candidates, chosen from a group of nine semi-finalists, are scheduled for interviews on the Terre Haute campus within the next three weeks.
The finalists are Deborah Curtis, provost and chief learning officer at the University of Central Missouri, and Michael Licari, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Indiana State. The candidate selected for the position will succeed Dan Bradley, who in April announced his plans to step down in January.
Licari’s interview with the presidential search committee will take place October 25 and 26. Prior to joining Indiana State in 2015, Licari served as interim provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the University of Northern Iowa and, for a brief period, served as acting president.
Curtis will visit the campus for her interview November 1 and 2. She has served in her current role with the University of Central Missouri since 2012. She previously served as dean of the College of Education at Illinois State University from 2006 to 2012.
"We are very pleased to have two incredibly strong candidates for this critically important position, both of whom understand and fully support Indiana State’s mission and both of whom we feel have the skills and experience to be successful as its next president," said Jeff Taylor, chair of the presidential search committee. "We were prepared for the possibility of three or four finalists, but in the end these two candidates distinguished themselves among all others."
More than 70 candidates were initially considered for the position. The ISU Board of Trustees expects to make a decision on Bradley’s successor before Thanksgiving.