After a six-months nationwide search, Associated Students, Inc. hired Pat Worley as the new executive director, replacing former director Carol Ackerson, who left the post before the fall semester.

Worley served as the interim executive director and prior to that, she was the director of the ASI Children?s Center.

Worley will receive a salary of $ 70,000 compared to the $56,500 she received as associate director. Former executive director Carol Ackerson made $76,000 last year.

ASI President Artemio Pimentel made the final recommendation earlier this month.

An ASI search committee narrowed the field of the 257 applicants to two finalists, Pat Worley and Georgia Jarvis.

Pimentel made the final recommendation to the ASI board of directors at the April 17 meeting.

“This is the most important decision that the association has made,” said search committee chair Shaun Lumachi at the meeting. “This decision is very valuable to ASI because it shows that we are not a bunch of kids playing around with $ 8 million.”

The ASI board of directors voted unanimously on Worley last week and broke into applause.

After the committee made the recommendation, Worley?s salary contract went to Vice President of Student Affairs Shirley Uplinger, and President Donald Gerth for approval earlier this month.

The committee spent $3,046 of the $5,000 budgeted for the search.

Pimentel said that he recommended Worley because of her previous experience with the children?s center.

“She is a very approachable person,” Pimentel said. “Her prior experience has given her a broad perspective of what the students here really care about.”

Pimentel said that the other candidates had little experience working with college-aged students.

The search committee consisted of students, administration and faculty.

“We requested a faculty member to sit on it because sometimes faculty have to directly work with the executive director. We also wanted a faculty perspective,” Pimentel said.

“I value the fact that ASI is a learning based organization,” Worley said. “I applied for this position because I feel as if I had something to offer to the organization. I feel very enthusiastic about what ASI stands for and that?s representing the students.”

Send comments, questions, or concerns to [email protected]

For questions or information regarding thesite, please contact [email protected]