Two Women Among the Five Finalists for President of Fort Hays State University in Kansas

Fort Hays State University in Kansas has announced five finalists for president of the university. The university enrolls about 11,500 undergraduates students and 1,800 graduate students. Women make up 58 percent of the undergraduate student body. All of the presidential candidates have visited the Fort Hays campus over the past several weeks for interviews and public presentations. Two of the five finalists are women.

Tisa A. Mason is vice president for student affairs at Fort Hayes State University. She has held this post since 2008. Previously, she was dean of student life at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater. Earlier, she spent a decade as executive director of the Sigma Kappa Sorority & Foundation in Indianapolis. Dr. Mason is a graduate of Transylvania University in Lexington, Kentucky, where she majored in sociology and anthropology. She holds a master’s degree in education from Eastern Illinois University in Charleston and an educational doctorate from the College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia.

Mirta M. Martin is a professor of management and dean of the Reginald F. Lewis School of Business at Virginia State University. Before joining the faculty at Virginia State, Professor Martin was special assistant to the chancellor of the Virginia Community College System. Earlier she was executive vice president at John Tyler Community College in Chester, Virginia, and associate dean of the business school at the University of Richmond. Dr. Martin is graduate of Duke University in Durham, North Carolina. She holds an MBA from the University of Richmond and a Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University in Richmond.

Update: Dr. Mirta Martin was named president of Fort Hays State University on May 2. She will take office on July 1.