CHASS Dean Russ Meyer is named interim provost at Colorado State University - Pueblo

Pueblo- Colorado State University-Pueblo President Ron Applbaum, in consultation with Colorado State University System Chancellor Larry Edward Penley, today named Russell Meyer, dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, interim Provost in Pueblo.

CSU-Pueblo President Ron Applbaum announced in October that he would resume his career as a faculty member following completion of his four-year contract in July. Provost Barbara Montgomery also announced she is stepping down in August to return to teaching in the Department of English and Foreign Languages. A new provost will be named once a new president has been hired. The presidential search is expected to be completed this summer.

Applbaum and Penley agreed on the need for an appointment at this time and solicited the input of the campus community before naming Meyer. Meyer was appointed to ensure an effective transition with strong leadership during a time of major change at CSU-Pueblo.

According to Applbaum, Meyer has developed effective relationships not just within his own college’s department chairs and faculty, but with the deans of the other colleges, administrative offices throughout the campus, and numerous community organizations. As CHASS Dean, Meyer oversees a $4.3 million budget and supervises more than 120 full-time and part-time faculty in eight departments that offer 20 different major degree programs and 20 minors.

“Russ recognizes and values the benefits of collegial relationships and the need to work cooperatively to solve mutual problems and to advance the mission of the institution,” Applbaum said. “During his tenure at CSU-Pueblo, he has been committed to bringing the university and the community closer together, to be engaged in the community and to encourage community members to be engaged with the university as well.”

Meyer’s professional experience has been broad, including positions at a Research I institution, an open-admissions urban university, and two regional comprehensive Master’s I universities. Before joining the CSU-Pueblo staff in March of 2000, he served as chair of the Department of English at both Emporia State University (KS) and the Department of English at the University of Houston-Downtown. His early career was spent in a series of increasingly responsible administrative and teaching positions at the University of Missouri-Columbia, including director of composition and director of undergraduate studies.

“Russ is an established, well-respected dean on campus,” Penley said. “He recognizes and values the need to work cooperatively to solve mutual problems and advance the mission of the institution, particularly at this very pivotal time.”

His experiences in higher education have not been restricted to the institutions at which he has worked. For the past decade, he has been active in the Alliance of Universities for Democracy (AUDEM), a consortium of US and Central and Eastern European universities working together to improve education on both sides of the Atlantic. He has served as a member of the AUDEM governing board since 2000 and American vice president since 2003. He has edited eight
volumes of Perspectives in Higher Education Reform, the proceedings of the annual conferences of the Alliance of Universities for Democracy.

A Spenser scholar, Meyer’s recent scholarly activity has been guided mainly by his administrative activities. He has published books on broad topics such as developmental composition and more specific analyses on works such as Edmund Spenser’s The Faerie Queene.

“I am flattered and honored to be asked to accept this interim position at such a crucial time in the University's development. It has been a pleasure over the past six years to work with not only Provost Barbara Montgomery and President Ron Applbaum, but also a dedicated and collegial group of deans and administrators,” Meyer said. “I look forward to continuing that collaboration as we work together to move the University forward.”

Colorado State University - Pueblo is a regional, comprehensive university emphasizing professional, career-oriented, and applied programs. Displaying excellence in teaching, celebrating diversity, and engaging in service and outreach, CSU-Pueblo is distinguished by access, opportunity, and the overall quality of services provided to its students.