An interim vice president for university relations has stepped in to fill the vacancy left after the June 30 retirement of Kathy Stafford.

Tom Neumann will maintain the position until a search committee can find a permanent replacement. Gene Finn, vice president for institutional advancement, chairs the committee.

President Lester Lefton doesn’t expect the search to take longer than six to eight weeks.

“We’re going to be interviewing the finalists in a couple of weeks,” he said.

Lefton said he hopes this position will evolve into more of a press secretary position, in order to manage the press more effectively.

The vice president for university relations manages government relations, university communications and marketing and WKSU.

“I’m just trying to keep the division moving,” Neumann said. “Summer is a busy time here.”

Contact principal reporter Ben Wolford at [email protected].