Breaking: NMSU names finalists for president

The five finalists for the position of president of New Mexico State University include three former university presidents and two current deans.

One of the deans named as a finalist Tuesday during a special meeting of the Board of Regents is Garrey Carruthers, the former Repubican governor of New Mexico who currently heads NMSU’s College of Business and also holds the title of vice president for economic development.

The other dean listed as a finalist also has ties to NMSU. Daniel Howard, (CQ) dean of the University of Colorado at Denver’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, was a biology professor at NMSU starting in 1988, and was interim associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences before taking a job in Colorado in 2008.

The other three finalists are:

- David B. Ashley, professor of engineering and former president of the University of Nevada at Las Vegas.

- Guy Bailey, professor of English and former president of the University of Alabama and Texas Tech University.

- Elsa A. Murano, former president of Texas A&M University and currently interim director of the Borlaug Institute for International Agriculture there.

The five finalists will go through meetings with various NMSU stakeholder groups from April 21 through May 2, with the Board of Regents expected to announce the next president no later than May 10, said Regents Chairman Mike Cheney.

The search for a new permanent president was launched following the resignation of former president Barbara Couture in October.

“We focused on excellence throughout,” said Larry Lujan, chair of the presidential search committee, which presented regents with five recommended finalists during a closed-door meeting early Tuesday. “We wanted to deliver a list of finalists that would make the regents selection difficult because any one of them will be a great president for our university.” .