Penn State Provost a Finalist for University of Utah Presidency

Penn State Provost and Executive Vice President Nick Jones is one of three finalists to take over as president of the University of Utah, the school announced Friday.

Jones has worked at Penn State since July 2013 after previously serving as the dean of the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins University.

“The University of Utah Presidential Search Committee has narrowed the applicant pool to these three highly qualified candidates and is honored to recommend them to the Board of Regents for its consideration in selecting a new leader for the university,” search committee co-chair Harris Simmons said in a press release.

Jones is in the running for the position alongside University of Virginia Provost Thomas Katsouleas and University of Utah Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Ruth Watkins.

Each candidate is slated to travel to the Salt Lake City campus on Wednesday, Jan. 17, and interview with the university’s Board of Regents on Thursday, Jan. 18. According to the finalists announcement, the board may choose to hold a public meeting at 5:30 p.m. Thursday to select the new president, or it may hold a meeting at another time not yet announced.

“We thank the university’s trustees, faculty, students and staff, along with the community as a whole, for their valuable participation in this process,” search committee co-chair David Burton said in a press release.

Current University of Utah President David Pershing announced in May 2017 that he planned to step down from his post after controversy surrounding the firing and resignation of other senior administrators.