CSU announced the three finalists for the soon-to-be vacant position of CSUS President. Donald Gerth, the current president, is stepping down at the end of the semester.

The three finalists — Alexander Gonzalez, Karen S. Hayes, and J. Clark Kelso — represent a variety of backgrounds and will visit with faculty, students and administration the week of March 3.

Gonzalez is the current president at CSU-San Marcos. He has served there since 1996.

Prior to his tenure at San Marcos, Gonzalez taught psychology at CSU-Fresno for 18 years. Gonzalez has a master’s and Ph.D. in psychology from UC Santa Cruz and a bachelor’s degree in history from Pomona College.

Haynes currently serves as president for University of Houston-Victoria. She has been there since 1995.

Previously, she taught social work at the University of Indiana. She received her Ph.D. in social work at the University of Texas-Austin, her master’s degree in social work from McGill University in Montreal, and her bachelor’s degree in social work from Goucher College.

Kelso has been the director of Governmental Affairs Programs and the Capital Center for Governmental Law and Policy at the University of the Pacific’s McGeorge School of Law since 1994. He has a law degree from the Columbia University School of Law, and bachelor’s degrees in philosophy and mathematics from the University of Illinois.

Kelso will be on campus March 4, Gonzalez on March 5, and Haynes on March 7. The finalists will take part in open forums at 2:30 p.m. in the University Union on the days of their visits.

The CSUS Presidential Search Committee will make a final decision on their selection the week of March 11, following a meeting of the CSU Board of Trustees.

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