CSC announces three finalists for VPAA position

Dr. Bruno G. Hicks, Dr. Karen A. Meisch, and Dr. James Powell were chosen from a field of more than 20 applicants to replace Dr. Charles Snare, who announced his retirement in August. Each finalist will conduct on-campus interviews with the search committee, meet with President Rhine and the President’s Cabinet, and have discussions with faculty, staff from Academic Affairs, and student representatives during separate forums in the coming weeks. 

Hicks, the Dean of the School of Education at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts, will interview Nov. 19. Hicks has been a Dean at Fitchburg State since 2016. Prior to that, he was Professor of Education and Environmental Studies and Chair for the Division of Education at his alma mater, the University of Maine at Fort Kent. He was also the Co-Director of Environmental Studies and the Director of Expedition Studies at Fort Kent. In addition, Hicks taught in public schools and served as an Interim Principal in Maine. Hicks has two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Maine at Fort Kent – Biology and Environmental Studies – and a master’s degree in Environmental Education from Lesley College. His Ed.D. is in Science Education from the University of Maine at Orono.

Meisch, the Interim Dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, will interview Tuesday, Nov. 12. Meisch, who has worked in various roles at Austin Peay since 2007, has administrative and teaching experience. She’s been in her current role since August 2017, and was the Associate Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics at Austin Peay from 2014-17. In addition to serving as Dean, she was the Assistant Chair of the Biology Department and an Assistant Professor and Associate Professor of Biology. Meisch earned her Bachelor’s in Biology at Ashland University in Ohio and her Ph.D. in Biological Sciences at Vanderbilt University in Nashville.

Powell, who is currently the Dean of Professional Studies and Applied Sciences at Chadron State College, will interview Thursday, Nov. 7. Prior to becoming a Dean at CSC, Powell was a Professor and Director of the School of Education at Ferris State University in Big Rapids, Michigan, for three years. Powell, who received both his Bachelor’s degree in English Education and his Master’s in Linguistics with a specialization in Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages from Ball State University, began his teaching career as a middle school teacher in Indiana before earning a Ph.D. in Curriculum and Instruction from Arizona State University. He was an Assistant Professor at Ball State in Muncie, Indiana, for 13 years and the Professor and Chair of Teaching and Learning at the University of Alaska-Anchorage for six years before joining Ferris State’s administration.

In a previous version of this press release, Dr. Daniel P. Donaldson was listed as a finalist for the VPAA position. However, he has since withdrawn from consideration.