Sheila Stearns, commissioner emerita of higher education for the state of Montana, was named interim chancellor at the Billings campus of Montana State University. The Billings campus enrolls about 5,000 students and women make up 61 percent of the undergraduate student body. She will assume the role of interim chancellor on May 5.
Dr. Stearns retired as commissioner of education for the state of Montana in 2012 after serving in that post for nine years. Since that time she has served as a senior fellow and consultant for the Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges, which is based in Washington, D.C. Earlier in her career, Dr. Stearns was president of Wayne State College in Nebraska and provost at Western Montana College in Dillon.
Dr. Stearns holds a bachelor’s degree, a master’s degree in history, and a doctorate in educational administration and supervision, all from the University of Montana.