Search for New Utah Tech President Continues with New Committee

The search for a new president for Utah Tech University begins in earnest as a committee is formed to fully replace Richard “Biff” Williams.

Williams resigned from his position in January after seeing the university through a name change and other transformations. He’s currently in the midst of a lawsuit involving workplace harassment.

A statement from Utah Tech University listed some of the requirements ahead of the January 17 deadline for applications.

The statement said, “On behalf of the Utah Board of Higher Education and the Utah Tech University Board of Trustees, we are pleased to announce that we are officially starting the search for the 19th president of Utah Tech University. As an institution in the midst of unprecedented growth, we look forward to finding a visionary leader who displays exemplary leadership skills, deeply values the university’s rich culture and traditions, and embraces our open, inclusive, comprehensive polytechnic mission.”

The committee consists of various Utah Tech staff, alumni, and state board members.

The statement said, “As directed by Utah state policy, our 14-member search committee includes key stakeholders from Utah Tech, the Utah Board of Higher Education, and the Southern Utah community. The search committee’s role is to manage the process up until it names 3-5 finalists to be considered by the Board of Higher Education. The Board of Higher Education will conduct the final interviews and select the new president.As part of this process, the search committee held three public listening sessions in early 2024 to gain valuable feedback about what characteristics and future vision the next leader of our beloved university should possess. These listening sessions were open to students, faculty, staff, and community members.”

The feedback taken from these meetings will be used to make a Utah Tech University presidential profile. Officials could announce the new president as early as March.