Eastern New Mexico University Announces Five Finalists for ENMU System Chancellor

by John Houser

Portales, NM (10/28/2022) — Oct. 28, 2022- Portales, NM- Eastern New Mexico University has announced that after an extensive nationwide search, five finalists have been named as candidates to become the next chancellor of the ENMU system.

ENMU's current chancellor, Dr. Patrice Caldwell, announced earlier this year that she will retire from the University after a chancellor has been named, ending a 42-year career dedicated to ENMU students and the institution.

The finalists are Bruno Hicks, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dalton State College; James Johnston, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Midwestern State University; Gary Liguori, Founding Dean, College of Health Sciences, University of Rhode Island; Larry Sanderson, Vice President of Institutional Research and Accreditation, New Mexico Junior College, and James Williams, Senior Vice President for Student Affairs (retired), Emporia State University.

"I believe the search team and our consultants, EFL Associates, have done a thorough and comprehensive search in order to find five very qualified candidates to present to the Board of Regents." Said Phillip Bustos, head of the search committee and Vice President of the ENMU Board of Regents. "I am very grateful to the search committee and the staff from ENMU who served and aided in the search process. Narrowing from over 90 candidates to five finalists was no easy task."

The five candidates will spend two full days touring the ENMU system's three campuses, located in Portales, Roswell and Ruidoso, and meeting with constituent groups before the ENMU Board of Regents makes its final decision. All visits to ENMU's three campus system will occur between Nov. 1 and Nov. 4.

Bruno Hicks is the current Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Dalton State College in Dalton, Georgia. Hicks has held previous positions at Fitchburg State University as the Founding Dean of the School of Education and was at the University of Maine at Fort Kent as the Chair of Teacher Education and Professor of Education and Environmental Studies. Hicks has a PhD from the University of Maine, a master's degree from Lesley College and a bachelor's degree from the University of Maine at Fort Kent.

James Johnston is the current Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Midwestern State University. Johnston has spent the last 19 years at Midwestern State University. In his time there he has served as the Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs and prior to that was the Dean of the Robert D. & Carol Gunn College of Health Sciences and Human Services. During this time, he was also the Interim President at Midwestern State University from Sept. 2021-May 2022. Johnston has a PhD from Texas Woman's University and a master's and bachelor's degree from Midwestern State University.

Since 2016, Gary Liguori has served as the Founding Dean of the College of Health Sciences at the University of Rhode Island in Providence, Rhode Island. Liguori has held previous positions at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga serving four years as the Department Head for Health and Human Performance and was at North Dakota State University for seven years as an assistant/associate professor and graduate coordinator in the Department of Health, Nutrition & Exercise Sciences. Liguori has a PhD from North Dakota State University, a master's degree from East Stroudsburg University and a bachelor's degree from the University of Central Missouri.

Larry Sanderson is the current Vice President of Institutional Research and Accreditation at New Mexico Junior College in Hobbs, New Mexico. Sanderson has been at New Mexico Junior College for more than 14 years holding prior positions of Vice President for Development, Institutional Effectiveness and Accreditation, and Vice President for Instruction. Sanderson holds a PhD from The University of New Mexico, a master's degree from Purdue University and a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University.

James Williams was the Senior Vice President for Student Affairs (retired) at Emporia State University, in Emporia, Kansas. Williams spent 26 years at Emporia State University, close to 18 years as the Senior Vice President for Student Affairs and 8 years as the Director/Associate Director of Residence Life. Williams has a PHD from the University of Kansas, a master's degree from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, a master's degree from South Dakota State University, and a bachelor's degree from Keene State College.

To learn more about each candidate and the times and dates of each of their visits to the ENMU system campuses and scheduled community forums, please visit www.enmu.edu/PresidentialSearch.

Contact

John Houser

Assistant Vice President Marketing and Communications

Eastern New Mexico University

575.562.2123

john.houser@enmu.edu