Dr. Mary Jane Saunders Selected as FAU's Sixth President
(Updated March 3, 6:30 p.m.)

Mary Jane Saunders, Ph.D., was selected today as Florida Atlantic University’s sixth president by the University’s 13-member Board of Trustees. READ MORE...

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Board of Trustees Votes on New President
The Board of Trustees interviewed the three finalists for the position of president of Florida Atlantic University today, in the Majestic Palm Room of the Student Union on the Boca Raton campus. The meeting, which was open to the public, began at 9:30 a.m. The candidate interviews ended at 3:30 p.m. at which time the Board began deliberations.

The interview schedule:
10 – 11:30 a.m:  Dr. Terry Hickey (view archived webcast)
11:30 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.:  Break
12:15 – 1:45 p.m.:  Dr. Gary Miller (view archived webcast)
2 – 3:30 p.m.:  Dr. Mary Jane Saunders (view archived webcast: final interviewee and deliberations)
3:30 – 6:15 p.m.:  Board deliberations (view archived webcast of final interviewee and deliberations)

A Welcome Reception will be held starting at 5:30 p.m. tonight at the Eleanor R. Baldwin House. Students, faculty and staff are cordially invited to attend the reception and meet the new president.

View the Candidates at the Open Forums
Archived video of the candidate forums held on Monday, March 1 and Tuesday, March 2 has been posted here.

Past Updates

Schedule of Open Forums and Interviews for Final Candidates
(March 1)

Members of the FAU and local communities are cordially invited to attend Open Forums that will be held for the three final candidates for the position of President at Florida Atlantic University. Final candidates have been invited to FAU on March 1 and March 2 to meet with various constituencies of the University and for interviews with the Board of Trustees on March 3. Dates and times for the Open Forums are provided below and listed by campus for your convenience. Please feel free to attend any or all of the events, as your calendar permits. 

Please note: Open Forums taking place at the Boca Raton campus will be live webcast and available as video-on-demand. Open Forums taking place at partner campuses will be available as video-on-demand and will be available via video conference at additional sites. All archived webcasts and videos-on-demand have been uploaded for March 1 forums (see link below).

• Click to view the Open Forum schedule and links to archived webcasts/videos-on-demand
• Click to view the live webcasts

Three Presidential Candidates Selected as Finalists; Campus Visits Monday and Tuesday
(Feb. 25)

The Presidential Search Committee has selected three finalists for the presidency of Florida Atlantic University. They are Dr. Terry L. Hickey, Dr. Gary L. Miller and Dr. Mary Jane Saunders.The finalists will make a round of campus visits on Monday, March 1, and Tuesday, March 2, speaking in open forums and taking questions. The candidates’ individual schedules will be announced shortly. These events will be open to students, faculty, staff and the public, and they will be available on the web.

Here are brief bios of the three finalists:

Terry L. Hickey, Ph.D.
Dr. Terry L. Hickey is provost and executive vice president at the University of Central Florida. With a student body exceeding 53,500, UCF is the third largest university in the United States. Dr. Hickey has held his present title since 2006. From 2003 to 2006, he was UCF’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. He has also served as senior vice president and provost at the University of Akron (2000-2003) and dean of the College of Sciences at Old Dominion University (1997-2000). From 1979 to 1997, he was at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he held a succession of administrative positions including associate provost for academic programs and associate vice president for medical center programs. Dr. Hickey received his Ph.D. in physiological psychology from the University of Miami in 1972, and he took postdoctoral training in neuroanatomy at the University of Wisconsin from 1972 to 1974.

Gary L. Miller, Ph.D.
Since 2006, Dr. Gary L. Miller has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs and research at Wichita State University, where he is also a professor of biology. Wichita State has a current enrollment of 14,500 undergraduate and graduate students. From 2002 to 2006, Dr. Miller was dean of the arts and sciences college and a professor of biology at the University of the Pacific. He chaired the department of biology at the University of Mississippi from 1995 to 2002, having joined the biology faculty there in 1988. He also was a member of the zoology faculty at Weber State University, where he served as assistant director of the Museum of Natural Sciences. Dr. Miller received his Ph.D. in biological sciences from Mississippi State University in 1982.

Mary Jane Saunders, Ph.D.
Dr. Mary Jane Saunders has been provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Cleveland State University, which is currently serving more than 16,000 undergraduate and graduate students. Dr. Saunders joined Cleveland State University in 2003 as director of the Biomedical Health Institute and a professor in the department of biological, geological and environmental sciences. She was founding dean of the College of Science, CSU’s second largest college. She was named interim provost in 2006 and provost in 2007. Prior to arriving at CSU, Dr. Saunders was a program officer and deputy division director at the National Science Foundation, director of the Institute of Biomolecular Science at the University of South Florida and an assistant professor in the botany department at Louisiana State University. Dr. Saunders received her Ph.D. in botany from the University of Massachusetts in 1982, and she did postdoctoral work at the University of Georgia from 1982 to 1983.

Click here to view archived webcasts of the candidate interviews.

Five Semi-finalists for FAU Presidency Selected;
Interviews Set for Feb. 25 — Will be Webcast
(Updated Feb. 23, 8 p.m.)

From a field of 43 applicants for the presidency of Florida Atlantic University, the Presidential Selection Committee on Tuesday selected five semi-finalists. The Selection Committee will interview the semi-finalists in the Majestic Palm Room of the Student Union on the Boca Raton campus on Thursday, Feb. 25, starting at 8:30 a.m. The interviews will be open to the public and webcast via a link (only active during live events) on the "Upcoming Events/Timeline/Webcasts" page available at left. (This page also lists the interview times for each candidate).

In alphabetical order, here are the semi-finalists and brief summaries of their backgrounds. Their letters of application and resumes can be accessed here.

Paul W. Ferguson, Ph.D., DABT
Since 2006, Dr. Ferguson has been serving as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville (SIUE). He is also a professor of pharmacology/toxicology and biology and an adjunct professor of environmental sciences. SIUE is currently serving 13,600 undergraduate, graduate and professional students.. Prior to joining SIUE, Dr. Ferguson was vice president for research and graduate studies and a professor of toxicology at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas. He has also been vice provost, dean of graduate studies and research, and a professor of toxicology at the University of Louisiana at Monroe. Dr. Ferguson received his Ph.D. in pharmacology and toxicology from the University of California, Davis in 1981. He is a diplomate of the American Board of Toxicology (DABT).

Terry L. Hickey, Ph.D.
Dr. Terry L. Hickey is provost and executive vice president at the University of Central Florida. With a student body exceeding 53,500, UCF is the third largest university in the United States. Dr. Hickey has held his present title since 2006. From 2003 to 2006, he was UCF’s provost and vice president for academic affairs. He has also served as senior vice president and provost at the University of Akron (2000-2003) and dean of the College of Sciences at Old Dominion University (1997-2000). From 1979 to 1997, he was at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, where he held a succession of administrative positions including associate provost for academic programs and associate vice president for medical center programs. Dr. Hickey received his Ph.D. in physiological psychology from the University of Miami in 1972, and he took postdoctoral training in neuroanatomy at the University of Wisconsin from 1972 to 1974.

Gary L. Miller, Ph.D.
Since 2006, Dr. Gary L. Miller has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs and research at Wichita State University, where he is also a professor of biology. Wichita State has a current enrollment of 14,500 undergraduate and graduate students. From 2002 to 2006, Dr. Miller was dean of the arts and sciences college and a professor of biology at the University of the Pacific. He chaired the department of biology at the University of Mississippi from 1995 to 2002, having joined the biology faculty there in 1988. He also was a member of the zoology faculty at Weber State University, where he served as assistant director of the Museum of Natural Sciences. Dr. Miller received his Ph.D. in biological sciences from Mississippi State University in 1982.

Kathie L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Dr. Kathie L. Olsen is senior advisor to the chief human capital officer at the National Science Foundation (NSF), a position she has held since 2009. From 2005 to 2009 she was deputy director and chief operating officer of the NSF, an appointment that required Senate confirmation. She served as associate director for science in the Office of Science and Technology, a unit of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, from 2002 to 2005; this position also required Senate confirmation. From 1999 to 2002 she was chief scientist at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), an agency that she had served for the previous two years as acting associate administrator of the Office of Biological and Physical Research. She has been on the faculties of The George Washington University and the State University of New York-Stony Brook. Dr. Olsen received her Ph.D. in biology from the University of California-Irvine in 1979, and she was a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard Medical School from 1979 to 1980.

Mary Jane Saunders, Ph.D.
Dr. Mary Jane Saunders has been provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Cleveland State University, which is currently serving more than 16,000 undergraduate and graduate students.  Dr. Saunders joined Cleveland State University in 2003 as director of the Biomedical Health Institute and a professor in the department of biological, geological and environmental sciences. She was founding dean of the College of Science, CSU’s second largest college. She was named interim provost in 2006 and provost in 2007. Prior to arriving at CSU, Dr. Saunders was a program officer and deputy division director at the National Science Foundation, director of the Institute of Biomolecular Science at the University of South Florida and an assistant professor in the botany department at Louisiana State University. Dr. Saunders received her Ph.D. in botany from the University of Massachusetts in 1982, and she did postdoctoral work at the University of Georgia from 1982 to 1983.

Presidential Search Committee Meeting Update – Feb. 23

The Presidential Search Committee met at 1:30 p.m.on Feb. 23 in the Board of Trustees Room (ADM 305) on the Boca Raton campus to review all candidate applications and identify semi-finalists for on-campus interviews. VIEW THE ARCHIVED WEBCAST HERE.

Open Forums/Interviews Announced
Members of the FAU and local communities are cordially invited to attend Open Forums that will be held for three expected final candidates for the position of President at Florida Atlantic University. Final candidates will be identified on Feb. 25 and invited to FAU on March 1 and March 2 to meet with various constituencies of the University and for interviews with the Board of Trustees on March 3. Dates and times for the Open Forums are provided at the "Upcoming Events/Timeline" link at left and listed by campus for your convenience. Please feel free to attend any or all of the events, as your calendar permits. 

Please note: Open Forums taking place at the Boca Raton campus will be webcast live and available as video-on-demand afterward. Open Forums taking place at partner campuses will be available as video-on-demand and will be available via video conference at additional sites. Please note specific details below. All webcasts will be available on the "Upcoming Events/Timeline" link at left.

Presidential Search Update – Feb. 17

Today the process of selecting the sixth president of Florida Atlantic University moves forward with the pool of candidates whose applications were received by the target date of Feb. 16. As previously noted, there is a possibility that additional applicants may come forward in the days ahead, and I will advise you if that happens. The letters of application and resumes that have been received so far are posted. (See "Presidential Candidates to date" link at left).

Here is the timeline of the remaining events in the search process:
Feb. 23 – The Presidential Search Committee meets at 1:30 p.m. in the Board of Trustees Room on the Boca Raton campus to review all candidate applications and identify semi-finalists for on-campus interviews.
Feb. 25 – The semi-finalists come to FAU to be interviewed by the Presidential Search Committee in the Majestic Palm Room of the Student Union; several finalists are selected. (Starting time to be announced.)
March 1 & 2 – The finalists visit FAU campuses and meet members of the University community and the greater community through a series of open forums. (Details to come soon.)
March 3 – The Board of Trustees meets to interview the finalists with the expectation of naming one to the presidency of FAU via majority vote. (Starting time to be announced.)

At every step of the way, the selection process will be open and transparent. All meetings and interviews will be open to students, alumni, faculty, staff and the general public, and they will also be webcast.

The Search Committee continues to encourage input from all of FAU’s constituencies. You can offer commentary by clicking on the “Your Thoughts” link at left and/or by filling out comment cards that will be made available to those attending the “meet the candidates” events on March 1 and 2. In the days ahead, I hope you will take advantage of the opportunity to play a personal role in this critically important decision-making process.

Nancy Blosser, Chair
FAU Board of Trustees