Penn State administrator named next USM president

The University of Maine Chancellor and Board of Trustees have named Jacqueline Edmonson the 18th President of the University of Southern Maine.

Edmondson, a system administrator from Penn State University, is expected to begin work July 1. Edmonson will replace Glenn Cummings, who served as president for seven years and announced his resignation in October.

Since 2017, Edmonson has served as Chancellor and Academic Director at Penn State Greater Allegheny, a campus near Pittsburgh. She has worked in higher education for nearly 25 years and holds a doctorate in education from Penn State.

Penn State Greater Allegheny has about 600 students. According to the school’s website, 80% are commuters and 30% are adult learners. The University of Southern Maine is also largely a suburban school with students of varying ages.

“She understands the lives of non-traditional students,” said Lydia Savage, president of the USM Associated Faculties Chapter at the University of Maine and chair of the geography department. Savage said he met Edmonson twice during the presidential search process.

Savage, who has worked at USM for nearly three decades, said he has classes of students that include 18-year-olds coming out of high school and living in dorms, people looking to change careers, college students with children and those who work full time. jobs in addition to going to school, among other groups, is one of the aspects of community that makes school special. She said she was happy to have a new president who comes from a school with a similar student body in that regard.

Edmondson arrives at the University of Southern Maine at a tumultuous weather for the University of Maine system.

Faculty at the University of Southern Maine threw a vote of no confidence in University of Maine system chancellor Dannel Malloy on Friday afternoon, citing the departure of three UMaine system presidents in less than a year and the lack of faculty input into major decisions.

But Savage said she was confident the USM search committee acted ethically and hired someone they thought was a good candidate. She said she was delighted to welcome Edmonson on board.

Jacqueline Edmonson was unavailable for an interview prior to publication.

This story will be updated.

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