Dr. Jon Whitmore, one of three candidates vying to be PSU president, has withdrawn from the selection process.
According to an Oregon University System press release sent today, Whitmore, who is currently President of Texas Tech University, has determined that being PSU president would not be a good fit for him after last week’s visit to campus.
“My wife, Jennifer, and I want to thank the Portland State University community for providing such a warm welcome during our visit,” Whitmore said in the statement. “Portland State is a fine university with a bright future; however our personal leadership interests don’t align appropriately with [the] institution’s most immediate goals and needs.”
Whitmore came late to the PSU presidential search after announcing on Feb. 1 that he was planning on resigning from his current presidential post in Texas. His resignation from Texas Tech is effective in early 2009.
During Whitmore’s PSU visit, he meet with students, faculty and administration and was the subject of an open forum where over 200 members of the PSU community came to hear his plans for the university and ask him questions.
There are now only two candidates for president, Dr. Wim Wiewel, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs at the University of Baltimore and Dr. Kathie Olsen, deputy director and chief operating officer for the National Science Foundation.
The State Board of Higher Education is expected to make a hiring decision in early May.
Continue to check www.dailyvanguard.com for updates on the PSU presidential selection process.