The South Carolina State University Presidential Search Committee has announced the names of the three finalists vying to become the university’s 10th president.

They are:

* Dr. Johnson O. Akinleye, the associate vice chancellor for academic programs at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington.

* Dr. George E. Cooper, the deputy administrator for science and education resources development at the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

* Dr. Juanita P. Fain, vice president for planning at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas.

Last week, the five finalists aiming for S.C. State’s top position met with university stakeholders.

On Monday, the committee narrowed that field down to three candidates but did not release their names until Tuesday.

Dr. Juliette B. Bell, a provost at Fayetteville State University, and Dr. Lawrence Davenport, interim president of the Paragon Foundation in Florida, were not among the final three.

The selection of the three finalists is the culmination of four months of work by the committee, which started with more than 40 applicants. The committee was assisted in the process by the Washington, D.C.-based firm Academic Search.

The S.C. State board will now take over the process and select the next president in the coming weeks.

Committee Chairman Maurice Washington said the process was, “fair, open but mostly importantly transparent.”

Washington, who also serves as chairman of the S.C. State board, said the board could meet as early as next week to begin reviewing the candidates.

The new president will replace former S.C. State President Dr. Andrew Hugine. The board decided to not renew Hugine’s contract last December and placed him on administrative leave after reviewing his performance on two evaluations. The board then tapped Dr. Leonard McIntyre to be the interim president.

McIntyre will continue to serve in that capacity until the new president is under contract, according to Washington.

The search committee set a target date of July 1 to have the new president in office. Washington believes that target date is well within reach.

“As I will continue to say, our future is brighter than our past,” Washington said.

A look at the finalists:

Dr. Johnson O. Akinleye

Akinleye has experience in higher education in areas such as administration, fund raising, accreditation and teaching.

During his campus visit last Wednesday, Akinleye said strengthening S.C. State’s academic programs to compete in the global economy is the key to dealing with issues like accreditation, state funding, student recruitment and infrastructure.

He said his main goals are creating a strong student body through strong academics, engaging the university constituency, ensuring fiscal viability and crafting a vision for the university.

“The institution has much potential. It’s going to take new leadership. Leadership that has energy and vision to move to the next level,” he said last week.

Akinleye received his doctorate in organizational communication and development from Howard University. In addition, he has done a post-doctoral study at Harvard University. He finished both his master’s degree and undergraduate work at Alabama A&M University.

He has served in various positions at UNC-Wilmington, Bethune-Cookman University, Bowie State University and Edward Waters College.

Dr. George E. Cooper

Cooper started his career at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 1991 after more than two decades in academics. He said that experience will allow him to lead S.C. State from day one.

“My experiences may allow us to shortcut some of the challenges facing the university,” Cooper said during his visit last week.

He said those challenges include recruiting students, expanding research and getting additional state funding.

Cooper’s agency at the USDA is responsible for distributing more than $145 million each year to a broad range of activities for minority colleges and universities.

He said there would be two mandates for him as S.C. State’s president. The first is accountability and the other is preparing students to be successful locally, nationally and globally.

To make the university more attractive to potential students, Cooper said he would look at all of S.C. State’s academic programs to assess their relevancy.

Cooper also said that he wants to engage state legislators about the importance of fully funding the institution.

Cooper received his doctorate in animal nutrition from the University of Illinois and received a master’s degree from Tuskegee University.

Previously, he was vice president of academic affairs at Alabama A&M University. He also served as a professor and dean at Tuskegee University.

Dr. Juanita P. Fain

Fain said she desires to make a great university even better if selected as S.C. State’s next president.

Her speciality is enrollment management. At UNLV, she facilitated an enrollment increase of 10,000 students through various initiatives. She believes she can also build S.C. State’s enrollment by strengthening its academic programs, increasing scholarship funding and turning to local school districts to recruit potential students at early ages.

During her visit last Thursday, she noted community involvement would also be important.

“The institution can’t be just in the community sharing a zip code. We have to be of the community,” Fain said.

Fain would also seek both private and corporate donors, which she says is a key to the university’s future success.

Fain has a doctorate in higher education administration from Ohio University and a master’s degree in educational psychology from the University of Tennessee.

She has worked at UNLV for the past 12 years in a variety of administrative positions. Previously, she was also a psychology professor at Knoxville Business College and director of student financial aid and scholarships at Ohio University.

T&D Staff Writer Lee Tant can be reached by e-mail at ltant@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-534-1060.

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