Western Carolina University Chancellor John Bardo is one of four finalists for the position as president of West Virginia’s Marshall University.

Marshall’s presidential search committee co-chairs A. Michael Perry and Menis Ketchum announced Friday, May 20, that the finalists are Bardo; Thomas R. Hanley, current vice president and former provost of Auburn University; Stephen J. Kopp, special assistant to the chancellor with the Ohio Board of Regents, and former provost of Ohio University; and Charles E. Kupchella, president of the University of North Dakota. The four are expected to visit Marshall’s campus in the near future for a series of meetings with campus and community constituencies.

“We were delighted and impressed with the variety of applicants who are presidents and provosts of major institutions with outstanding academic achievements,” Perry said. “Each of the four finalists have strong backgrounds in higher education and have achieved significant accomplishments in a wide variety of very important areas vital to the future of Marshall University.”

Bardo has been chancellor at Western since 1995. Before joining Western, Bardo was provost and vice president for academic affairs for two years at Bridgewater State College in Bridgewater, Mass. He also has been an administrator at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville, Fla., the University of Southewest Texas State University in San Marcox, Texas, and Wichita State University in Wichita, Kan.

He received his bachelor’s degree in economics in 1970 from the University of Cincinnati, his master’s in sociology in 1971 from Ohio University, and his doctoratge in sociology in 1973 from The Ohio State University.

In a letter written to Marshall’s academic search consultant John Dibiaggio on March 24, Bardo said that he was “interested” and “would appreciate being considered a candidate” for the presidency. He touted his achievements with academic quality and enrollment.

“In 1995, Western enrolled approximately 6,700 students and its admissions standards were among the lowest in the sixteen-campus University of North Carolina system. The university was not academically well-positioned nor did it have a strong enrollment management system,” Bardo wrote. “Over the next several years, I worked closely with faculty, staff, and the Board of Trustees to change the institutional positioning. An enrollment management division was created, academic programs were reviewed and enhanced, campus facilities were improved, and new marketing approaches were begun. Since that time, undergraduate applications have increased by more than 50 percent and the quality of applications is significantly improved.”

Bardo also focused on the creation of a new Millenium campus, which should more than double the university’s size.

“One of the most important recent projects undertaken by the institution has been the acquisition of property to create a ‘public/private partnership’ campus. Western now comprises nearly 600 acres and the property is being master planned to allow co-location of businesses, research facilities, and housing with various academic programs to promote regional and economic development,” Bardo wrote. “Once the plan is approved by the state-wide Board of Governors, Western will extend its economic development activities to include ‘high-tech’ business development in the Cullowhee Valley. As a result of these and other actions, Western has become known as a leader in economic development in the state.”

For now Western has not released any statements about Bardo’s possible departure.

— From staff reports