Provost Office Appointments

Interim Utah State University Provost Noelle Cockett announced the selection of key members of the Provost’s office.

 

Steven Hanks, Gary Straquadine and Stacie Gomm will join the office.

 

“We have been seeking two vice provosts at 50 percent time commitments, and I’m pleased to report that we’ve identified excellent people to fill those slots,” Cockett said.

 

Steven Hanks, a member of the faculty in the College of Business, was named vice provost for International Affairs.

 

“Steve brings excellent experience to this position, having recently overseen international outreach degree programs in China and Singapore,” Cockett said.

 

Hanks also served as dean of the College of Administrative and Financial Services at the Arab American University in the West Bank and associate dean for College Development and International Programs in Utah State’s College of Business. Other international experience includes leading evaluation teams for the Shingo Prize for Excellence in Manufacturing in Mexico and Canada, and teaching global business courses on the main campus as well as in Taiwan and Peru. He has also been a consultant on entrepreneurship and vocational training in Bangladesh and lectured in China, the Netherlands and the United Kingdom.

 

His international work informs his Utah State courses on global business strategy and international management, and this is mirrored in his scholarly work, Cockett said.

 

A number of offices will report directly to Vice Provost Hanks, including Study Abroad, International Students and Scholars and International Development. Cockett said the role also  has the larger responsibility of coordinating all units with an international focus since a part of the university's mission as a land-grant research university is to engage globally.

 

Hanks served as president of the Faculty Senate for the 2000-01 term. He has received Advisor of the Year and Teacher of the Year honors a number of times for the Department of Management and Human Resources, and in 1998, he was named Professor of the Year by USU’s International Student Council. 

 

The second vice provost selection, Gary Straquadine, will oversee Academic and Faculty Services.

 

“Gary has been working in the provost’s office as associate vice provost concerned primarily with curriculum management,” Cockett said. “He’s done a fabulous job this past year working through a labyrinth of issues to ensure that our students have access to the courses they need when they need them.” 

 

With this move Straquadine will take on added duties of new faculty orientation, mediation, faculty development and tenure and promotion processes. 

 

“Gary brings to his role in the provost’s office eight years experience as head of the Department of Agricultural Systems Technology and Education,” Cockett said. “Over the past year, he’s done institutional research to get at bottleneck courses and offer departments bridging funds to release those pressures until we can get new faculty lines in place.” 

 

Straquadine has received campus and national awards for teaching, advising and research. 

 

“Gary is a marathon runner, and I must say that he brings that fierce dedication and tenacity necessary to complete a race to his role as a leader,” Cockett said.

 

The new appointments result from the departure of Chris Fawson, who leaves the provost’s office to become department head in economics.

 

“It was clear from Chris’ time as vice provost for Academic and International Programs that the job was simply too big for one person and needed to be split, which is why we reorganized for two 50 percent positions,” Cockett said. “Chris’ legacy is stellar. During his tenure, he cleaned up a number of policy issues and regularized the tenure and promotion process to include faculty representation on the centralized committee.

 

“Although we are asking a lot of these new vice provosts, we are keenly aware that we’re not over the financial hump yet as the state rebounds from a recession,” Cockett said. “So we want to be fiscally conservative about our administrative positions — even though Utah State is slim in this area compared to its peers.”  

 

Two associate vice provost jobs will be eliminated, the one previously held by Straquadine and a second position held by Christine Hailey of Engineering to oversee issues of diversity.

 

“We’ll roll the diversity portfolio into the vice provost for Academic and Faculty Services portfolio of responsibilities,” Cockett said. “Dr. Hailey has received a large National Science Foundation Grant that needs her entire focus.”

 

Stacie Gomm will fill a third void in the office of the provost, created when Sydney Peterson moved to serve as chief of staff for President Albrecht.   

 

“Frankly, we thought that no one could replace Sydney as assistant provost, but we are very pleased to have Dr. Gomm on board,” Cockett said. “She brings an excellent background in assessment, general education and computing. Moreover, she is an articulate and strong problem-solver. The breadth of issues that comes across the assistant provost’s desk is probably unimaginable by most of the campus.”

 

Gomm has directed the Computer and Information Literacy initiative, a graduation requirement for all students. She also is a member of the Providence City Council and a trustee of the Cache County Library Board and Cache Education Foundation.

 

“We are delighted to have these positions filled,” said Cockett. “The strain of our staff picking up others’ tasks in the interim is evident, and the workload has been tremendous. It’s a great team that has stepped up to the challenge.” 

 

Laura Marks, budget manager for the office, leaves the unit for a position at the Huntsman Cancer Center due to the transfer of her husband’s employer from Logan to Salt Lake City.

 

“Laura is highly respected for her budget savvy and integrity,” Cockett said. “It’s difficult to see her go.” 

 

The position will not be replaced.

 

Cockett added that the search for a vice provost for Graduate Studies/Dean of the Graduate School has been closed, and she hopes to fill the position internally within the next few months. Other vice provosts in the office include Linda Wolcott, vice provost of Libraries, and Joyce Kinkead, vice provost for Undergraduate Studies and Research. 

 

“Moving to a vice provost model of administration from various director and dean positions will be very helpful in coordinating issues of importance to faculty and students,” Cockett said. “While we have lost some positions by collapsing roles, we believe that we’ve assembled a very fine team who will help a new provost, when appointed, with an easier transition.”

 

A search for a new provost is currently under way.