NORMAL, Ill. (WMBD) – The Illinois State Board of Trustees unanimously voted in Dr. Aondover Tarhule as the school’s 21st president on Monday.
Tarhule was previously appointed as interim president after Dr. Terri Goss Kinzy stepped down in February 2023. According to the university, the transition will take place “immediately.”
“I must express my deepest appreciation to the Board of Trustees for entrusting me with this vital leadership role; your confidence in me is both humbling and inspiring.” Tarhule said. “To our community stakeholders, your faith and passion for all things Illinois State makes the Bloomington-Normal, surrounding area, and Illinois State communities unique.
“From the moment I stepped on campus to interview for the position of provost and vice president for academic affairs, the community’s investment and dedication to the success of Illinois State was clear and heartwarming,” he said. “Under my leadership, Illinois State will remain visible, engaged, and a collaborative partner committed to improving the quality of life and enhancing the sense of belonging for everyone in our community.”
A year-long nationwide search by a 29-person committee of trustees, students, faculty, staff, and alumni eventually narrowed down the candidates to four candidates which included Tarhule, Dr. Donald Easton-Brooks, Dr. Elizabeth Reitz Mullenix and Dr. Valerio Ferme.
All the candidates visited the campus and held open forums in February, after which Tarhule was selected to be the next president.
“The national search for the University’s next president was highly recommended through our shared governance partners, and the process was represented with a strong cross-section of stakeholders,” said Dr. Kathy Bohn, the board’s chairperson. “The Board of Trustees determined that not only is Dr. Tarhule known to our campus community, but his strategic and visionary perspective helped him stand out in a very competitive field of candidates.
“He is an approachable leader who brings a high level of integrity, knowledge, and thought to conversations that will continue our institution’s 167-year legacy well into the future. I’m proud to say he’s earned our trust and the title of president,” she said.
It was a unanimous decision from the board of trustees.
“I would ask all ISU leaders, faculty, staff, students, alumni, ISU foundation board members, and the Bloomington-Normal community to support Dr. Tarhule as he works to move Illinois State forward,” said Bohn.
Tarhule was welcomed with handclaps, handshakes and hugs. One of his supporters is ISU’s 17th President Dr. Al Bowman. Bowman is impressed with Tarhule’s strong academic background and understanding of university finances.
“He continues Illinois State’s long tradition of being a student centered institution. And I’ll think he’ll carry that tradition forward,” Bowman said.
In a news conference following the board’s special meeting, Tarhule said he would continue to focus on the ongoing priorities he thinks are transformative for Illinois’ oldest public institution of higher learning. Those priorities include changes to the nursing school, the new engineering school and several diversity initiatives.
“Whether it’s academic programming, campus renovations, the new engineering college, like I mentioned diversity, all of these are the things that we know we need to do as an institution in order to thrive and be resilient,” Tarhule said.
Hailey Ivy, a third year public relations and psychology student, is hoping to see more intention when it comes to bridging the gap between university leadership and students of color.
“With him being in position, I’m looking forward to a lot of things in particularly just the retention rate at ISU for students of color,” said Ivy. “And also him being more involved as president and also the board being way more involved of the lives of African-American, Latina, any students of color.”
While aware of the challenges the growing university faces, the new president is positive everything will come together.
“I’m very confident that we’ve got the pieces, we’ve got the time, we’ve got the people and we can do it,” Tarhule said.
Tarhule came to ISU in 2020 as vice president for academic affairs and provost, also serving as a professor in the Department of Geography, Geology, and the Environment. He previously served as vice provost and dean of the Graduate School at Binghamton University and was executive associate dean and department chair in the College of Atmospheric and Geographic Sciences at the University of Oklahoma.
The presidential employment agreement lists Tarhule base salary as $450,000. This is up from Kinzy’s yearly salary of $375,000. The contract will last four years.
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