The Office of Research and Economic Development at Mississippi State University is getting ready to begin the search for a new vice president. The current vice president, Kirk Schulz, will assume his new position as the president of Kansas State, on June 15.
Schulz said he always has loved his time at MSU and will be returning to visit.
“I have really enjoyed my time here at MSU and will miss many good friends and colleagues here,” Schulz said.
Schulz said as the vice president, he generally is responsible for helping lead the research enterprise at Mississippi State, which is a very large operation.
“My office assists faculty and staff members in helping to obtain funds to support their research, in providing funds for research initiatives and faculty start-up cost, and to ensure that we comply with all of the federal regulations and rules related to our research projects,” Schulz said.
Schulz said the vice presidency is a great job, and he had the opportunity to work with many gifted faculty members at MSU.
The search committee will be chaired by Sarah Rajala, Dean of the Bagley College of Engineering. The search committee has not set a date yet for their first meeting, but it should be soon.
Rajala said MSU President Msrk Keenum sent an announcement to the search committee identifying the committee membership and proposed timeline.
“I do not believe the president has announced the interim vice president for research, although I know he intends to have an interim appointed,” Rajala said. “I expect he will make that announcement soon.”
The qualifications and the job description for the vice president has not been finalized yet but will probably be the first priority for the meeting, Rajala said.
In the announcement sent by Keenum to the search committee, he said that a formal position announcement should be completed during the committee’s first meeting. Keenum said a Web site devoted to the search is being created to allow the campus community to monitor the progress of the search. There will also be national advertisements to help get the word out about the search for the new vice president.
“Our plan is to conduct an aggressive national search and to identify the best possible leader for this critical component of Mississippi State University,” Keenum said in the announcement. “We will work to have the vice president in place by the start of the fall semester.”
The search committee is composed of eight faculty members and seven other individuals appointed by the MSU president.
Keith Coble, member of the search committee and professor of agricultural economics, said as of right now, there is not a lot of information regarding the search.
“I expect the committee will convene soon, and the process will be defined more clearly at that time,” Coble said.