REGENTS NAME SEARCH PANEL

The Board of Regents Friday named a 24-member search committee to help select a new president for Southeast Missouri State University.

The committee will be chaired by two regents, Donald Harrison of Cape Girardeau and Lynn Dempster of Sikeston. Harrison is president of the Board of Regents and Dempster is vice president.

"I think we have a really good mix," said Dempster.

She said the committee includes persons from throughout the region. "We tried very hard not to stack it with Cape people," she said after the meeting.

The committee will assist in the search for a new president to replace Dr. Kala Stroup, who resigned in September to take the job of Missouri commissioner of higher education. The search could take from five to nine months.

Harrison said the Board of Regents will make the final decision.

Dr. Bill Atchley is interim president while the search proceeds.

The committee includes three former regents: Ben Bidewell of Poplar Bluff, Anne Bradshaw of Cape Girardeau and Dan Williams of St. Louis.

The former regents are among eight at-large members named to the committee. The others: Calvin Chapman, former Cape Girardeau public schools administrator; Gary Rust, president of the Southeast Missourian's parent company, Concord Publishing; Karla Cooper of the Kennett public schools; Herb Fallert, a former state representative from Ste. Genevieve; and Veryl Riddle, a St. Louis lawyer.

A variety of university and community groups are represented on the search committee.

There are five Southeast faculty members, one from each of the five colleges. The five members: Dr. Ikedi Ehie of the Harrison College of Business, Dr. Sue Shepard of the College of Education, Dr. Jane Kelley of the College of Health and Human Services; Dr. Joe Low of the College of Liberal Arts; and Dr. Jin Gong of the College of Science and Technology.

Chris Robertson, president of Student Government, is the lone student on the committee.

Southeast's professional staff is represented by Anna Tripp of computer services. Donna Masterson of the economics department represents the clerical, technical and service staff.

Dr. John Hinni, dean of the School of University Studies, represents the administration.

Kim Mothershead of Benton was chosen a representative of the alumni.

Also on the committee: Weldon Macke, Cape Girardeau County auditor and incoming president of the University Foundation; Dr. Robert Webb, Farmington schools superintendent; Al Spradling III, Cape Girardeau mayor; and Dennis Marchi, incoming president of the Cape Girardeau Chamber of Commerce.

The regents met in closed session Wednesday to decide whom to appoint to the committee. The session marked the second time since June that the regents have held closed sessions on the search process that a media lawyer says violated the state's Open Meetings law.

Harrison announced the names of the search committee at the end of Friday morning's regular meeting. The regents held a closed meeting just prior to the open session to finalize the list.

The search committee will meet with consultants Allan Ostar and William O'Connell Jr. at 12:30 p.m. Monday.

Ostar and O'Connell of the Washington, D.C.-based Academic Search Consultation Service will arrive in Cape Girardeau around noon Monday. They are scheduled to meet with the search committee, university officials, students, faculty and staff, community leaders and members of the university foundation.

The consultants will hold a series of 26 group and individual meetings, beginning Monday afternoon and ending Wednesday morning.

The sessions include an open forum for the campus community at 4 p.m. Tuesday at Academic Hall Auditorium.

Regents

Action

Friday, Oct. 27

University Center Ballroom

Action items

Approved fiscal 1995 financial report.

Accepted audit of Student Recreation Center and Housing System bond funds.

Accepted audit of federally funded programs.

Approved a physical therapy assistance program.

Renamed the vocational home economics education degree as a family and consumer education degree.

Renamed the technology education degree as an industrial education degree.

Appointed presidential search committee.