By TIM CARPENTER
Kansas Reflector
TOPEKA — A Nebraska higher education administrator was chosen to serve as the 10th president of Pittsburg State University, the Kansas Board of Regents said Friday.
Daniel Shipp, with a doctorate in educational leadership from University of the Pacific, is vice chancellor for strategic initiatives at the University of Nebraska Medical Center and executive vice president and provost of the four-campus University of Nebraska system.
He replaces PSU president Steve Scott, who was appointed president of the southeast Kansas university in 2009. Scott has worked at the university for three decades and plans to retire in June.
“I am excited to join the Pittsburg State family and take on the role of president at this wonderful institution,” Shipp said in a statement. “I’m eager to meet the members of ‘Gorilla Nation’ and work alongside them to serve students, the city of Pittsburg and all of southeast Kansas.”
He said Scott created a “remarkable and enduring legacy” at Pittsburg State. It’s public university with about 6,000 students in the Kansas Board of Regents system.
Cheryl Harrison-Lee, chairwoman of the state Board of Regents, said Shipp had a proven track record of developing and implementing initiatives designed to drive student enrollment. Those initiatives included removal of barriers faced by underserved student populations, she said.
“He also brings extensive experience in helping students succeed in their academic careers and after graduation,” Harrison-Lee said.
Prior to his current job in Nebraska, Shipp was vice chancellor for student success at the University of Nebraska-Omaha and the University of Nebraska Medical Center. he also was vice chancellor for student affairs and enrollment management at University of Nebraska-Omaha.
He earned a bachelor’s degree in education from University of Nebraska-Lincoln, a master’s in education at University of Nebraska-Omaha and the education doctorate at University of the Pacific.