ALAMOSA, COLO. (Feb. 9, 2015) . . . The Board of Trustees for Adams State University today announced the names of four candidates selected as finalists to succeed Dr. David Svaldi as the next president of the institution. In alphabetical order, the finalists are:
*Richard Duran, Ed.D.
*Margaret E. Madden, Ph.D.
*Ricardo Maestas, Ph.D.
*Beverlee J. McClure, Ed.D.
Each candidate possesses a doctoral degree; each has a record of achievement in administration, academia, the public arena, and in financial development; and each has demonstrated a strong desire to lead Adams State University as it prepares to enter its second century. Details on the candidates’ respective qualifications and experience are available at: http://www.adams.edu/president/search/timeline.php
“We are fortunate to have such a well-qualified group of finalists,” said Arnold Salazar, chair of the Adams State University Board of Trustees. “I want to extend my thanks to the Search Committee, which has done an extraordinary job of identifying these candidates.”
Over the next six weeks, each of the finalists will visit Alamosa to meet with administrators, faculty, staff, students, alumni, and other members of the university community. The Board of Trustees hopes to be able to name new president in April.
Duran is President of Oxnard College, Ventura County Community College District in Oxnard, Calif. He holds a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Northern Colorado and earned a B.A. and M.A. in education from Adams State. He was named Adams State’s Outstanding Alumnus for 2009.
Madden is Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at State University of New York at Potsdam, where she is also a tenured Professor of Psychology. She holds a Ph.D. and M.S., both in psychology, from University of Massachusetts, Amherst, as well as a B.A. in psychology from University of Wisconsin, Madison.
Maestas is an Education Consultant for Pinnacle Educational Services. He previously served as Special Assistant to the Chancellor, Texas State University System, Austin, Texas. He is former President of Sul Ross State University, Alpine, Texas, where he was also a tenured professor. He earned a Ph.D. from the Center for the Study of Higher and Postsecondary Education, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. He also holds an M.A.T in Spanish and B.A. in psychology and Spanish from the University of New Mexico.
McClure is President and CEO of the New Mexico Association of Commerce & Industry. She previously served as Cabinet Secretary of Higher Education for the State of New Mexico. Her experience also includes serving as President of Clovis Community College in Clovis, New Mex., and as Provost of the St. Augustine Campus, St. Johns River Community College in St. Augustine, Fla. She holds a doctorate in educational administration from the University of Texas at Austin, as well as an M.B.A. from the University of Arkansas-Fayetteville and a Bachelor of Business Administration from Texas A & M, Commerce.
The naming of finalists follows a year-long process of developing a position announcement, reviewing applications, and interviews by a Presidential Search Committee appointed by the Board of Trustees. The committee included representatives from across the university community: trustees, faculty, administration, exempt and classified staff, students, Adams State
University Alumni Association, Adams State University Foundation, and business and civic leaders from the San Luis Valley.
Trustee Paul Farley, Chair of the Search Committee, said, “The entire university community owes a great debt to these dedicated individuals who have invested countless hours in pursuit of a single goal: securing the continued growth and vitality of Adams State for the next generation.”
The committee was assisted by search consultants retained by the Board of Trustees. Hope Johnson and Camila Alire of Pyramind, LLC, a Virginia-based firm with a connection to the San Luis Valley, assisted the committee in creating in the position announcement and took the lead in identifying promising candidates.
President Svaldi announced last May his intention to retire at the end of the current academic year. He has led the university since July 2005.
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