St. Cloud State University

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Earl H. Potter III named SCSU president

Friday, March 16, 2007

Earl Potter III

The Minnesota State Colleges and Universities Board of Trustees has appointed Dr. Earl H. Potter III as president of SCSU.  He will be introduced to the community during a 1:30-2:30 reception at the Atwood Memorial Center on campus. 

Potter, 60, has served as executive vice president and provost at Southern Oregon State University in Ashland since 2003. Previously, he was dean of the College of Business at Eastern Michigan University; dean of the School of Management at Lesley University; director for organizational development and employment services at Cornell University; associate dean for academics at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy; a fellow for the American Council on Education in the Office of the Chancellor at the University of Colorado; and chief negotiator for management and head of the Department of Economics and Management at the U. S. Coast Guard Academy.

The chancellor’s recommendation will be considered by the Board of Trustees at its regular meeting Wednesday. Potter was one of three finalists recommended to the chancellor by a search committee chaired by Wilson Bradshaw, president of Metropolitan State University.

Potter also served in the U.S. Coast Guard from 1969 to 1993 and retired at the rank of captain. He holds a Ph.D. in organizational psychology and a master’s degree in psychology, both from the University of Washington; and a bachelor’s degree in psychology with honors from Williams College.

The new president will replace Roy H. Saigo, who has served as the university’s president since 2000. The appointment will become effective July 1.

St. Cloud State University, the system’s largest university, serves 19,500 students and offers 225 undergraduate and graduate programs and is part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system, which comprises 32 state universities and community and technical colleges serving the higher education needs of Minnesota. The system serves about 240,000 students per year in credit-based courses and an additional 130,000 students in non-credit courses.

- Melinda Voss

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