Finalists Named In Search For La. Higher Ed Leader

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — Four people have been named as finalists to be Louisiana's next higher education commissioner.

The Board of Regents announced the contenders Tuesday. They are:

—Robert Donley, former executive director and CEO of the Iowa Board of Regents.

—Kim Hunter Reed, executive director of the Colorado Department of Higher Education and a former deputy chief of staff for Gov. Kathleen Blanco.

—Cathy Sandeen, chancellor of the University of Wisconsin Colleges and University of Wisconsin-Extension.

—Paul Turman, system vice president for academic affairs at the South Dakota Board of Regents.

The Board of Regents intends to name the new commissioner at its April 18 meeting.

Joseph Rallo, commissioner since January 2015, plans to retire from the position that pays him $364,000 a year. The commissioner oversees policy governing Louisiana's 38 public colleges.