Rogerson chosen as next UALR chancellor

Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/STATON BREIDENTHAL --5/10/16--  Andrew Rogerson (left) talks with Sherry Rankins-Robertson, UALR Associate Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Wednesday afternoon before meeting with faculty and staff on the school's campus.
Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/STATON BREIDENTHAL --5/10/16-- Andrew Rogerson (left) talks with Sherry Rankins-Robertson, UALR Associate Vice-Chancellor for Academic Affairs, Wednesday afternoon before meeting with faculty and staff on the school's campus.

The provost of a California university has been selected as the next chancellor of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock pending approval of the UA System board of trustees.

Andrew Rogerson, provost and vice president of academic affairs at Sonoma State University, would begin his role as the 10th chancellor of UALR on Sept. 1, according to a news release from the UA System.

Rogerson said he and his wife, Janessa, are excited about the opportunity.

"Little Rock has captured our hearts, and Janessa and I look forward to becoming an active part of the community," he said. "We are excited to begin, taking the university to the next level."

Originally from Scotland, Rogerson, 63, is a microbiologist and painter.

For the past five years, he has been provost at Sonoma State, which is in Rohnert Park, Calif., and part of the 23-campus California State University System.

Donald Bobbitt, president of the UA System, announced Friday that he will recommend Rogerson to the board of trustees, which is to meet Wednesday and Thursday at Cossatot Community College of the University of Arkansas in De Queen. Historically, the board has unanimously approved a system president's recommendations for chancellor.

"I feel Dr. Rogerson brings a complete skill set to match UALR's needs and is the right person for the job at this time," Bobbitt said.

Former U.S. Sen. David Pryor, a member of the UA board, said that out of the three finalists he interviewed, Rogerson was "probably the best fit for the UALR campus."

When asked why he felt that way, Pryor said, "It's just instinctive, objective I guess. ... He's a very impressive person."

Pryor said it will be interesting to have a chancellor who has a Scottish accent.

After getting the offer from Arkansas this week, Rogerson said, he withdrew from two other job searches. He was a finalist to be president at Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville and at Southern Oregon University.

Rogerson will be paid $350,000 per year at UALR, said Nate Hinkel, a spokesman for the UA System.

Rogerson will replace UALR Chancellor Joel Anderson, who has spent more than 45 years at the institution and 13 as chancellor. Anderson, who is retiring June 30, earned $219,406 annually. Rogerson said he was paid $220,000 a year at Sonoma State.

Rogerson said UALR was a perfect fit for him. He was looking for an opportunity where he can stay for 10 years and make a difference at a college and the city where it's located. Rogerson said he feels very strongly about the role of a metropolitan university like UALR.

"I truly believe in the mission of this great university and look forward to the prospect of building on the good work that has already been done and continuing to realize its great promise as we move forward together," he said.

"An institutional priority will be an intentional focus on student success and strengthening the relationship with the city at large. I see the university as a dynamic force with the influence to drive economic development and social well-being. I embrace the good work that is before me and I am committed to making the U of A, Little Rock, a destination campus for the nation."

Rogerson said he helped make Sonoma State a destination campus. Since arriving there in 2011, the number of undergraduate students enrolled there has increased by more than 1,000 while the grade-point average of entering freshmen has also increased -- from 3.16 to 3.24 on a 4.0 scale.

At Sonoma State, 59 percent of entering freshmen graduate within six years, which is the national average. At UALR, the six-year graduation rate is under 30 percent.

Rogerson earned both an undergraduate honors degree in biology and a doctorate in protozoan ecology in his native Scotland. He's been a professor, scholar and senior administrator at leading universities in England, Canada and the United States, including most recently at Marshall University in West Virginia and California State University in Fresno.

Bobbitt said the other two finalists were also impressive. They were Mark Rudin, vice president for research and economic development at Boise State University, and Cheryl Lovell, special adviser to the chancellor and to the chief academic officer of the Colorado State University System.

The three finalists individually visited the campus and participated in public forums, ultimately leading to Bobbitt's recommendation of Rogerson to the UA board of trustees.

According to a news release, Rogerson's selection ends an eight-month process led by a search committee established by Bobbitt and supported by Greenwood/Asher & Associates Inc., an executive search and consulting firm.

The search committee, led by Bob Denman, former vice chancellor for advancement at UALR, included a diverse group representing the UA board of trustees, university faculty and staff, and the private business sector.

"Dr. Rogerson is a unique individual and someone I quickly came to admire as a person and as an administrator, and I'm pleased that he is the candidate Dr. Bobbitt feels is the best fit for UALR," Denman said.

Ruben Arminana, the president of Sonoma State, said Rogerson was a "superb selection" to head UALR.

"He has the temperament, the intellect and the dedication to students that would make him a superb chancellor," Arminana said during an interview earlier this month.

Janessa Rogerson is a development officer for Sonoma State's Green Music Center, which is a focal point for the arts in the northern San Francisco Bay Area. The Green Music Center presents classical, contemporary, jazz, chamber and world music artists in concert in the 1,400-seat Weill Hall and the 240-seat Schroeder Hall.

Pryor said Janessa Rogerson's fundraising background was an asset to her husband's candidacy to be chancellor.

"When we have a position like this, I think the fact that his spouse is in development and knows about raising funds for a university -- this is not a negative," Pryor said. "I think this is a positive."

Janessa Rogerson also has Arkansas roots. Her grandparents, Garland and Lily Bean, were from Plumerville in Conway County, where they operated a store. Her parents met at Arkansas State Teachers College, which is now the University of Central Arkansas in Conway. Janessa Rogerson still has aunts and uncles in Conway and Morrilton.

Metro on 05/21/2016

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