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CBHE
appoints commissioner Editor-in-Chief
The
Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education appointed a new person
for the position of commissioner. The
Board named Quentin Wilson acting commissioner Sept. 17 for a period of
six weeks. He s
got a good reputation around the state, said College President Julio
Le n. He s a very capable individual. I assume they have chosen a
person with a lot of capabilities. Wilson
said he took the position for two reasons. He thinks higher education is
vital to the future of the state, and during this vulnerable time, he
wants to try to make a difference. I
thought it would be an important challenge and a critical one, Wilson
said. However,
he does feel pressure as commissioner because of the recent budget cuts
and withholdings higher education in Missouri has experienced. There s
a lot of budget challenges, Wilson said. When you talk about
withholdings and other cuts, there s an open door to higher education.
We have to show that good performance already exists, then improve
it. Wilson
replaces Dr. Karla M. Stroup, who resigned the position Sept. 15 to
assume the presidency of American Humanics in Kansas City, Mo. Dr.
Larry Martin, vice president for academic affairs, said it was a
surprise when Stroup resigned and Wilson was named acting commissioner.
He said it must have been an emergency situation. I
did not know the name prior to that, Martin said. He has worked in
the governor s office. He has not been in the education field as far
as I can tell. But he does have a lot of experience in developing
budgets. As
Gov. Bob Holden s cabinet director since January 2001, Wilson has
worked with state department directors to improve performance and
interagency policy. He has taken a leave of absence from his cabinet
position. Before
becoming a member of Holden s cabinet, Wilson served as director of
the Missouri Department of Revenue from 1998-2000 and as deputy director
of the Missouri Department of Economic Development from 1994-1998. He
has emphasized customer-centered transformation and managing for results
throughout his years of public service. He worked to develop and
implement the Show Me Results initiative, a statewide performance
improvement program that gained Missouri recognition as one of the top
states managing for results by Governing Magazine. Wilson
has a bachelor s degree in public affairs from George Washington
University in Washington, D.C., and a master s degree in business
administration from St. Louis University. He completed Harvard
University s Program for Senior Executives in State and Local
Government in 1995. Wilson s
first order of business will be to prepare the budget requests for the
next fiscal year. I m
sure he will be devoting all of his energies to that, Le n said. Wilson
said he will focus on making higher education a high priority for the
legislature. He wants high-quality education, educational opportunities
for everyone and economic improvement. We
have to show the value of higher education, and we have to be able to
improve it, Wilson said. In this time of limited resources, it s
important to focus on the most important outcomes first. The
CBHE is still looking to appoint an interim commissioner of higher
education during Wilson s six-week term. Wilson
expects to only serve as commissioner for that period. He has not
applied for the position of interim commissioner. Martin
believes the Board is having trouble finding a full-time commissioner
because of the state of the budget for higher education in Missouri. To
draw the budget cuts wouldn t be much fun, Martin said. |