21 applicants for president revealed diverse pool of candidates, no Warren

Madeleine Winer

Beverly Warren’s name was not among the 21 applications collected by Kent State’s legal department and released in response to a public records request at the end of the search.

Warren said she was recruited by Storbeck/Pimental & Associates, an executive search consultant, for the position. Questions and documents about the search process have been deferred to the university’s Office of General Counsel, which is compiling documents related to the search.

In December, university spokesman Eric Mansfield said all documents related to the presidential search should emphasize that the applications did not include all potential candidates. Because the presidential search was still in the recruiting phase, he said, the committee could consider more people for the position.

“Kent State is providing copies of applications of those who submitted their names for consideration for the position of university president in response to search advertising,” Mansfield said in an emailed statement.

Applicants for university president:

  • Alexzander Asea, professor and chairman of the Morehouse School of Medicine
  • Nasser Assaf, professor of business management at Strayer University
  • Tony Atwater, past president of Norfolk State University
  • Lloyd Benjamin, President Emeritus, Trustee and Professor at Indiana State University
  • Andrew Briscoe, director of budget and legislation, Division of Professional Registration Missouri Department of Insurance
  • Rita Cooma, CEO, Managing Director, ICCOUNSEL
  • Terry Farris, dean of education, Fortis College
  • John Paul Feigerle, postal supervisor, United State Postal Service
  • Walter Sir Anthony Johnson, chair of the department of computer science, Shaw University
  • Lorraine Justice, dean, College of Imaging Arts and Sciences, Rochester Institute of Technology
  • Chandra Mishra, professor of entrepreneurship, College of Business, Florida Atlantic University
  • Mike Nwogugu, co-founder, Strategic Planning & Co.
  • Ronald Nykiel, provost and vice president academic affairs, University of Maryland Eastern Shore
  • Kamal Dean Parhizgar, professor of management and business ethics, Texas A&M University
  • Chee Piong, director of franchise development, 5-Spice
  • Martin Shapiro, professor of marketing communications/international business, Berkeley College
  • Vimla Sharma, principal and the head of the department of English, Shree Veer Balika College
  • George Tsetsekos, dean emeritus and George Francis professor of finance, Drexel University
  • W. James Weese, dean of faculty of health sciences, The University of Western Ontario
  • Dale Timothy White, senior partner, The SPECTRUM Group
  • Frederic White, professor of law, Texas A&M University

Two former university presidents were among those interested in becoming Kent State’s next chief, according to the 21 applications released by the school’s legal department Friday. Several administrators applied to Kent State’s job postings, including Lloyd Benjamin, former president at Indiana State University, and Tony Atwater, past president of Norfolk State University and Indiana University of Pennsylvania.

Ronald Nykiel, provost and vice president of academic affairs at University of Maryland Eastern Shore, also applied.

The applications were obtained Dec. 6 by the Daily Kent Stater through a public records request submitted with the Office of General Counsel on Oct. 9 that asked for “all applications submitted to the Presidential Search Committee or Storbeck/Pimentel & Associates for the position of president of Kent State University.”

Ohio state representative Kathleen Clyde told the Stater in December that the university took “longer than it was necessary” to fulfill the request.

“I think that the result is a positive one that the records have been turned over,” said Clyde, who is a member of the Subcommittee for Higher Education. “I think open records are important, and it is a key part of our government that citizens have access to the information we’re dealing with.”

Contact Madeleine Winer at [email protected].