By Brian Fraley, Dairyland Sentinel
Universities of Wisconsin Board of Regents President Amy B. Bogost and Executive-in-Charge Chris Patton have officially appointed the 23-member Search and Screen Committee tasked with identifying the next leader of the state’s flagship university.
The move comes 95 days after Chancellor Jennifer Mnookin announced she would leave the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Chris Patton is executive-in-charge of the state’s university system following the Board of Regents voting to fire the previous system president, Jay Rothman, for unspecified reasons earlier this month.
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Dr. Eric Wilcots, currently the Dean of the College of Letters & Science, will serve as interim chancellor. His term is set to begin on May 17, 2026, following Chancellor Mnookin’s departure after spring commencement
Additionally, the Board of Regents confirmed that the first meeting of the search committee has not been scheduled. A specific deadline for a final hire has not been established, though the university stated the committee will convene in the “coming weeks” to receive its formal charge.
“UW-Madison is a world-class university that embodies the Wisconsin Idea in communities all across the state,” Bogost said. “It will be our goal to find a leader that accelerates the university’s reputation for excellence in teaching, research discovery, and public service while driving innovation in a rapidly changing higher education environment.”
Bogost noted the weight of the task, stating that “the work of this committee over the coming months is critical to the future of the university and the state of Wisconsin.”
The process involves an initial screening by the 23-member group, which will then recommend a slate of finalists to a smaller Special Regent Committee. That group, chaired by Bogost and including Regents Haben Goitom, Jack Salzwedel, Karen Walsh, and Kyle Weatherly, will make the final hiring recommendation to the full Board of Regents.
So then, only after the 23-member committee recommends a slate to the Regent subcommittee, and that subcommittee recommends a finalist, will the full UW Board of Regents vote whether or not to hire the finalist.
The search committee, which has not yet started this search process, includes:
- Julie Anderson, Administrative Assistant, Department of Economics
- Zach Brandon, President, Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce
- Ankur Desai, Professor and Chair, Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences
- Haben Goitom, Regent
- Cherish Golden, Student
- Andrea Hicks, Associate Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering
- Rebecca House, Trustee, Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation Board
- Renee Moe, President & CEO, United Way of Dane County
- Christa Olson, Professor and Chair, Department of English
- Bret Payseur, Professor, Department of Medical Genetics
- Francisco Peñagaricano, Associate Professor, Department of Animal and Dairy Sciences
- Tonia Pittman, Director of Housing Facilities, University Housing
- Devesh Ranjan, Dean, College of Engineering
- Jack Salzwedel, Regent
- Paul Shain, Chair, Wisconsin Foundation & Alumni Association Board of Directors
- Soyeon Shim, Dean, School of Human Ecology
- Greg Steinberger, President & CEO, UW Hillel Foundation
- Karen Walsh, Regent
- Kyle Weatherly, Regent Vice President
- Drew Wesson, Student
- Jorja Wodziak, Student
