7 months, 4 finalists. Wait is over for WSU Tri-Cities

WSU Tri-Cities has a new chancellor.

Sandra Haynes, the deputy provost of academic and student affairs at Metropolitan State University of Denver, was announced Monday by WSU President Kirk Schulz as the Richland campus’ new leader.

Haynes was one of four candidates picked by a search committee this fall. She starts March 1.

The graduate in experimental neurophysiology from Colorado State University has worked at the Denver school for more than 20 years.

She is in charge of all of the academic units and was a first-generation, low-income student.

Reached in Denver, Haynes told the Herald she wants to strengthen the partnership, building great connections between the campus and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, one of 10 federal science labs in the nation.

“PNNL is a tremendous resource for the area, and for WSU, but especially in the Tri-Cities,” Haynes said.

When Haynes came to WSU Tri-Cities on Dec. 4, she said she was most impressed by the connection the university has with the region.

The community’s involvement with the university was “overwhelming,” Haynes said, adding that it was a perfect combination for higher education.

She said she looks forward as well to taking the helm of a smaller university. MSU-Denver, just west of downtown, has 19,000 students on its urban campus, compared with WSU Tri-Cities’ roughly 1,900.

“When you work in a larger institution, it can be easy to get out of touch,” Haynes said. “It’ll be great to be closer to those students, to be among them.”

The two schools do have some things in common.

Latino populations that are growing. WSU Tri-Cities has the system’s most diverse campus, with about 39 percent of students identifying as minorities.

Both have student housing. MSU-Denver has private partnerships for off-campus housing, but Haynes said that she sees the work as similar to WSU’s recent move to offer on-campus housing.

Both have “service at its heart and soul.” Haynes said that MSU-Denver always has been dedicated to serving the community most, and she’s glad that WSU Tri-Cities naturally has that, being part of a land-grant institution.

Academically, WSU Tri-Cities is more research-oriented, Haynes said, and has a large STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) program. She said she wanted to keep pushing those forward.

That push is a key goal for Schulz, who wants WSU to be a top 25 public research university by 2030.

“Sandra’s leadership skills and collaborative approach to building innovative partnerships promises an exciting future for WSU Tri-Cities as we continue to grow enrollment, academic programs and facilities,” Schulz said in a news release.

She also was impressed with the university’s teacher preparation program and its engaged, active faculty.

The enology and viticulture program will take a little more time to adjust to, Haynes said.

Though there’s a hospitality program at MSU Denver that gives her a familiarity with the business side of wine, she has more to learn about the science.

Schulz said a top priority for Haynes is to expand the partnership between the university and PNNL.

The two entities already co-manage the Bioproducts, Sciences and Engineering Laboratory, a research and teaching lab on campus.

Haynes replaces H. Keith Moo-Young, who has been chancellor for four years.

He’s overseen the expansion of the university to include the Ste. Michelle Wine Estates WSU Wine Science Center and on-campus housing, which is set to open next year.

Moo-Young, formerly dean of the College of Engineering, Computer Science and Technology at California State University, Los Angeles, replaced Vicky Carwein in 2013.

This story was originally published December 18, 2017 at 12:55 PM with the headline "7 months, 4 finalists. Wait is over for WSU Tri-Cities."