Following the departure of President Joyce McConnell in June, Rick Miranda, former provost and executive vice president of CSU under President Tony Frank, was appointed by the Board of Governors to serve as interim president while a national search for a new president is conducted. Associate Vice Provost Albert Bimper Jr., associate dean for academic affairs in the College of Liberal Arts and professor of ethnic studies, is serving as Miranda’s interim chief of staff.
Other changes within the University’s Senior Leadership
JANICE NERGER
Janice Nerger, who has served as dean of the College of Natural Sciences for 13 years, has stepped into the role of interim provost and vice president for academic affairs. Mary Pedersen will remain in the provost’s office as a special assistant to keep important initiatives on track while a search for a permanent provost is conducted. Simon Tavener, executive associate dean, is interim dean of the college.
KATHAY RENNELS
Kathay Rennels, former associate vice president of the Office of Engagement and Extension and a longtime Larimer County commissioner, has agreed to take over as interim vice president of the division as Blake Naughton returns to the faculty.
DR. SUE VANDEWOUDE
Dr. Sue VandeWoude, University Distinguished Professor with the Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Pathology and world-renowned veterinary virologist, is the new dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, succeeding Dr. Mark Stetter. VandeWoude was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2019 and has been director of the One Health Institute at CSU since 2020. She is the first woman to hold the deanship since the college launched its Doctor of Veterinary Medicine program in 1907.
SONIA KREIDENWEIS
University Distinguished Professor Sonia Kreidenweis is serving as interim dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate affairs until completion of a national search to replace Mary Stromberger, who accepted a new position at Ohio State University. Kreidenweis, an Atmospheric Science professor, previously served in leadership positions in the Walter Scott, Jr. College of Engineering, including research associate dean.
DR. A. ALONSO AGUIRRE
Dr. A. Alonso Aguirre is the new dean of the Warner College of Natural Resources, where he earned both a master’s and a Ph.D. in wildlife biology; he also holds a D.V.M. from the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico. Aguirre joins CSU from George Mason University, where he served as professor and chair of the environmental science and policy department, to fill the position left vacant when John P. Hayes retired. He is both a first-generation American and a first-generation college graduate and is the first Latin American to serve as dean of the Warner College.