Dr. Jesse Peters was announced in late May as Western Oregon University’s next president (Courtesy/Western Oregon University)
Dr. Jesse Peters, the dean of a small public liberal arts college in Colorado, will be Western Oregon University’s next president.
The college’s Board of Trustees plan to appoint Peters to the role at their next meeting on June 8, the university said in a news release Tuesday.
Located in Monmouth, WOU was a teacher training college from its early years and currently serves about 4,000 students, most of them undergraduates. The university has a smaller campus in downtown Salem targeting working adults.
Peters is currently dean of arts and sciences at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado and serves as the college’s interim provost. He’s originally from Georgia and was a first-generation college student, studying English. He has a master’s degree and Ph.D from the University of New Mexico, where he studied Native American literature, according to his biography.
“The campus asked for a transformational president to lead us into the future and we found that in Dr. Peters. The Board was impressed with Jesse’(s) track record in student success, diversity, equity, and inclusion, and transparent communication. We are confident he will hit the ground running when he joins us in Oregon,” Betty Komp, board chair for the university, said in a statement.
Peters was named one of four finalists for the role in April, the Polk County Itemizer-Observer reported. He was selected after another finalist for the role, Sukhwant Jhaj backed out. The Board of Trustees named Jhaj the college’s next president in early May. In mid-May, Jhaj told the university he would be unable to take on the job “due to compelling and unforeseen personal reasons,” university spokeswoman Paula Baldwin said in an email.
“It is my pleasure to serve Western Oregon University as its next President. The institution is poised for great things, and I will work diligently to lead positive and innovative change, working closely with faculty, staff, and students. We will reaffirm our strengths as we look to a vibrant future, where WOU is a growing and thriving place of opportunity,” Peters said in a statement. He said student success and retention will be his priorities while setting goals with the Board of Trustees.
-Rachel Alexander
