POCATELLO — The Idaho State Board of Education has narrowed its list of potential candidates to become the next president of Idaho State University down from over 80 people to just five finalists.

The Idaho State University President Search Committee interviewed 12 semi-finalists earlier this week to reach the top five choices for who will become the school’s 14th president after current leader Kevin Satterlee announced he was retiring after serving for a little over five years.

“We have an outstanding pool of finalists to choose from,” said state board member and search committee co-chair Cindy Siddoway. “I encourage the campus community, alumni and others to make time next week to attend the open forums and hear what these candidates have to say and then please share your thoughts with us on the online portal.”

Listed in alphabetical order, the Idaho State University president finalists are:

Matt Cecil

Cecil is provost and executive vice president for academic and student affairs at Northern Kentucky University, a school with 15,700 students. Dr. Cecil joined NKU in 2021 and supervises and oversees more than 1,200 faculty and staff members. Prior to joining NKU, he served as interim provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Minnesota State University, Mankato, where he also served for four years as dean of the College of Arts and Humanities. Dr. Cecil has also worked as a professor at Wichita State University and at his alma mater, South Dakota State University.

Cecil will participate in an on-campus visit at the ISU Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus on Dec. 8 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

C. Shane Hunt

Hunt is the dean of the College of Business and the Michael C. Ruettgers professor of marketing at Idaho State University, a school with 12,600 students. Dr. Hunt joined ISU in 2020 and has overseen a 9 percent enrollment increase in the College of Business, established 17 new privately funded scholarships and also raised funds to make improvements to the building that houses the College of Business. Prior to joining ISU, Dr. Hunt served as dean of the College of Business at Arkansas State University where he also worked as a professor of marketing. Since his arrival at ISU, Dr. Hunt has joined several boards including the Pocatello-Chubbuck Chamber of Commerce, the Girl Scouts of Silver Sage and the United Way of Southeastern Idaho.

Hunt will participate in an on-campus visit at the ISU Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus on Dec. 4 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Cynthia Pemberton

Pemberton is president of Lewis-Clark State College, a school with 3,800 students. Dr. Pemberton became president in 2018 where she oversees all facets of the institution. Accomplishments include the elimination of a budget deficit, securing funding to open LCSC’s Schweitzer Career Technical Education Center, and establishing a $1 million partnership with a private entity to support student scholarships. Prior to joining LCSC, Dr. Pemberton served as vice president for academic affairs at Colorado Mesa University and as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Dickinson State University in North Dakota. She also spent 14 years working at Idaho State University as an interim dean, department chair and faculty member.

Pemberton will participate in an on-campus visit at the ISU Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus on Dec. 5 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Robbyn Wacker

Wacker is president of St. Cloud State University in Minnesota, a school with 11,000 students. Dr. Wacker was named president in 2018 where she instituted a new strategic plan and has grown new undergraduate enrollment, which increased 16 percent this fall, marking the institution’s first enrollment increase since 2015. She also established the Minnesota Institute of Technology to expand technology opportunities for students. Prior to leading SCSU, Dr. Wacker served as provost and senior vice president, and two deanships at her alma mater, the University of Northern Colorado, where she also worked as a tenured full professor.

Wacker will participate in an on-campus visit at the ISU Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus on Dec. 7 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

Robert Wagner

Wagner is the executive vice president and chief operating officer at Utah State University, a school with 28,000 students. A 16-year veteran at USU, Dr. Wagner oversees various facets of the institution’s operations including student success, academic programming, fundraising, marketing and student recruiting and retention. He recently co-chaired the development of USU’s first strategic plan in 20 years. He also led USU’s online delivery programs, which have been ranked in the top 25 in the nation for eight consecutive years by U.S. News and World Report. Prior to his current position, Dr. Wagner also served in various other positions at USU including vice president of academic and instruction services and executive vice provost and dean of academic and instructional services.

Wagner will participate in an on-campus visit at the ISU Alumni Center on the Pocatello campus on Dec. 6 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.

All Pocatello campus interviews will be live-streamed on ISU’s YouTube page.

Following the on-campus interviews for each candidate, open forums are planned for students, faculty, staff and the public to meet and hear from the finalists. There will also be an online portal available to provide feedback about the candidates.

Additional information about the search, the finalists, campus visit itineraries and the candidate feedback portal will be posted on the Idaho State University website: isu.edu/presidentialsearch.

For questions about the candidate receptions and presentations in Pocatello, contact Allyson Johnson, 208-282-4798 or allysonjohnson@isu.edu.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank the members of the President Search Committee for their outstanding work in helping us identify these candidates,” said state board member Cally Roach, who served as the search committee’s other co-chair. “ISU has built great momentum over these past five years, and I am very confident every one of these candidates can take that momentum to the next level to the benefit of students, the community and the entire state.”

The State Board of Education will conduct interviews with the finalists on Dec.14. The board intends to name Idaho State University’s new president by the end of the year.