Kentucky State University is seeking to get position itself on the right track, and has locked in four candidates to be the next leader. Learn more in the story from at Monica Kast at the Lexington Herald-Leader below.
Kentucky State University has named four candidates, all with leadership experience in higher education, for the position of interim president, the university announced Wednesday afternoon.
The candidates are James A. Anderson, Everette J. Freeman, Patricia Lofton Hardaway and Ronald A. Johnson. All four have previously worked in higher education administration at historically Black colleges and universities.
Gerald Patton, chair of the KSU board of regents, said the board expects to make a selection later this month, according to a release from KSU.
Earlier this year, under House Bill 250, KSU halted its ongoing search for the next president and was instructed to name an interim president to serve until next year. The bill also gave the university $23 million to address its budget shortfall, with measures in place to create a management improvement plan and financial accountability for KSU. Another bill, Senate Bill 265, nearly completely replaced KSU’s board of regents.
Clara Ross Stamps has been the acting president of KSU since last summer, when former president M. Christopher Brown II resigned amid concerns about the university’s finances and multiple lawsuits filed against the university.
JAMES A. ANDERSON
Anderson is the former chancellor of Fayetteville State University, an HBCU in North Carolina, and was also a professor of psychology at that university. He is a trustee for Bennett College, and has experience as a vice president and associate provost at the State University of New York and at Texas A&M University, according to his candidate biography. He has held positions as a dean and professor at several other universities, and was a member of the Villanova University board of trustees for 10 years.
He has a bachelor’s degree from Villanova University and Ph.D. from Cornell University.
EVERETTE J. FREEMAN
Freeman is the former president of the Community College of Denver and former president of Albany State University, an HBCU in Georgia. He has held several other administration positions in higher education, including as a senior vice president, provost and dean, and has a background in human resources. He is a former member of the University of Phoenix Board of Trustees.
He has a bachelor’s degree from Antioch University, a master’s degree from the University of Illinois, and an Ed.D. from Rutger’s University. He also has a certificate from the Institute for Educational Leadership at Harvard University and a certificate in economics from Fircroft College.
PATRICIA LOFTON HARDAWAY
Hardaway is an attorney and the former president of Wilberforce University, a private HBCU in Ohio. She has also held the positions of interim president, provost and vice president of academic affairs at Wilberforce University, as well as serving on its board of trustees.
She has also worked as an attorney on employment litigation in multiple states, and as a consultant for several colleges and universities.
She has a bachelor’s degree from Wilberforce University, a master’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh and a J.D. from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law.
RONALD A. JOHNSON
Johnson is the former president of Clark Atlanta University, a private HBCU in Atlanta. While at Clark Atlanta University, he helped found and chair the Development Committee of the HBCU Executive Leadership Institute, which helps prepare future leaders of historically Black institutions. He is also a former member of the President’s Advisory Board of the White House Initiative on HBCU.
He has a bachelor’s degree and MBA from Adelphi University, as well as a master’s degree and Ph.D. from Stanford University.
