By KRWG News
Las Cruces – Jay B. Jordan, associate vice president for Research, Graduate Studies and International Programs at New Mexico State University, has accepted an appointment as interim provost and executive vice president.
In making the announcement of his selection of Jordan for this new role, NMSU Interim President Manuel T. Pacheco said there were strong and highly qualified individuals considered for this important university position, and he appreciated their willingness to serve. Jordan's appointment will take effect on Jan. 1.
Jordan said one area he plans to focus on is addressing the research concerns of the faculty.
"I'm a proponent of the faculty and their issues and concerns," Jordan said.
"Jay brings valuable experience to this assignment," Pacheco said. "I am confident in his ability to handle the responsibilities of this office and to help advance our mission of teaching, research and outreach. I thank Jay in advance for his leadership during this time when we will be facing challenging budget issues."
Jordan's background includes considerable expertise in engineering and administration and extensive experience as a faculty member at NMSU. He earned his bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering at NMSU and began work at the university's Physical Science Laboratory as a staff engineer from 1970-1978. He worked in industry for the next three years for Hewlett-Packard, then returned to NMSU as an instructor and staff engineer at PSL.
In 1984, he joined the faculty and was chief of the labs' space payloads section. In 1996, he became department head for the electrical and computer engineering department, which became the Klipsch School of Electrical & Computer Engineering during his tenure. In 1999 he was named dean of the College of Engineering, and he retired from NMSU in 2002 after a career that spanned more than 30 years.
He worked for Northrop Grumman Corp. for two years, then came back to PSL in 2004. Named PSL director in 2005, Jordan was again promoted, in July 2007 to his present position.
"I'm delighted," Jordan said. "I'm an Aggie through and through and I want to do everything I can to help President-elect (Barbara) Couture promote her vision and move the university forward."