News and Music Discovery
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Randy Dunn Officially Named New SIU President

Youngstown State University

UPDATE: 

Southern Illinois University’s next president is Randy Dunn.

According to WSIU, Trustees made the announcement today at the SIU Edwardsville campus.

Board Chairman Randal Thomas says he doesn’t expect big changes from Dunn right away, but expects he’ll leave his mark sooner rather than later. 

“We will give him time to lay out his vision and his direction, but he will begin to impact the university very soon upon arriving there, with his personality, his doggedness and his willingness to work," said Thomas.

Thomas says Dunn stood out among other candidates due to his ability to work both on a local, state and national level for the university.

“That was one of the questions we asked: ‘What experiences have you had in dealing with legislatures; federal government, state legislators, corporate and founders and contributors? How do you raise money, how have you been successful in the past, how do you see that applicable to Illinois?’ And his answers were spot on," Thomas said. 

Dunn, who is currently President of Youngstown State University, is no stranger to the SIU system. He previously served as a professor and chair of SIU Carbondale’s Educational Administration and Higher Education department.

Dunn will make $430,000 per year during his four-year contract.

His start date is unclear, as he is still under contract at Youngstown State.

Youngstown officials say they were caught off guard. According to newspaper the Vindicator, Dunn's contract with YSU is for three years.

The new job comes only seven months into Dunn’s tenure as president at YSU.

He will be SIU’s eighth President, succeeding Glenn Poshard when he retires later this year.

The SIU position becomes Dunn’s third university president job in the last 8 months. Dunn left MSU at the end of June after the Board of Regents voted in March not to renew his contract.

PREVIOUSLY:

According to Southern Illinois University Carbondale's Student Newspaper, former Murray State President Randy Dunn is the top contender for the SIU system presidency.

Current SIU President Glenn Poshard is retiring. Dunn has been the president of Youngstown State University in Ohio since July 2013. Dunn left MSU in early July following two votes by MSU's Board of Regents against renewing his contract.

The second vote followed the Kentucky Attorney General's opinion that a social gathering of university board members the night before the first vote violated Kentucky's open meetings law. 

The Daily Egyptian reported that Dunn is the top candidate:

According to a source in a position to know, Youngstown State University President Randy Dunn is the leading candidate for the position. Dunn has served as Youngstown’s president for seven months, taking office July 13, 2013.

SIU will announce the new president Monday at 2 p.m.  The SIU presidential search process did not include publicizing the finalists for that position.  MSU is in the final weeks of finding Dunn's full-time replacement.

Dunn's resume includes around 20 years of public sector work in Illinois ranging from a school teacher to college professor at SIU-C to state schools superintendent. The presidential post could provide a boost for state pension benefits, if Dunn opted for a state retirement plan.   Dunn's base salary at YSU of $375,000 is comparable to the salary of outgoing SIU president Glenn Poshard.

The Youngstown Newspaper has made unsuccessful attempts to reach Dunn about the report from the college newspaper.

UPDATE: Randy Dunn's facebook page is no longer available.

Related Content