The University of Wyoming has announced a field of three finalists for president of the educational institution. All three candidates have visited or will visit campus by mid-December for meetings with faculty, staff, and students. Each candidate will participate in a public presentation and question-and-answer forum on campus and be interviewed by the board of trustees. One of the three finalists is a woman.
Laurie Stenberg Nichols is provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at South Dakota State University. She has served in that role since 2009. Earlier in her career, she taught for six years at the University of Idaho. In 1994, Dr. Nichols was named dean of the College of Family and Consumer Sciences at South Dakota State University. For the 2008-09 academic year, Dr. Nichols was the interim president of Northern State University in Aberdeen, South Dakota.
Dr. Nichols is a graduate of South Dakota State University. She holds a master’s degree in education from Colorado State University and a Ph.D. from Ohio State University.
Update: Dr. Nichols was chosen as the next president of the University of Wyoming on December 21.