Kent State University President Lester A. Lefton has announced that Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs Robert Frank accepted the position of president at the University of New Mexico in Albuquerque, NM.
 
“Dr. Frank made significant accomplishments while at Kent State,” Lefton said. “He was an innovator who supported the introduction of systems that have had tremendous impact on our students’ success."

Lefton said Frank helped launch the university’s new College of Public Health and served as its interim dean. He also helped forge international strategic partnerships, supported study abroad opportunities, as well as recruitment efforts to draw more international students to Kent State.

In July, Frank announced his plans to step down as Kent State's provost at the end of this school year to seek a president's position. He had thrown his hat in the ring for several president's posts, including at East Tennessee State University, which he lost the bid for in November.

It was reported in mid-December that Frank was one of five finalists for the UNM president's post, as reported in the Albuquerque Journal.

“The Kent State University community is grateful to Dr. Frank for his unwavering leadership and dedication to student success and I thank him for his contributions to our excellence agenda,” Lefton said. “The University of New Mexico is fortunate to have Dr. Frank, and we wish him well.”

Kent State has begun an active search for a new provost. The search committee is chaired by Dr. Daniel Mahony, dean of the College of Education, Health and Human Services. It is expected that a new provost will be named by end of the February.

Frank will assume his position as the 21st president of UNM in June.