Duane Nellis

Nellis arrived at the University of Idaho in Moscow in 2009 and led a major $225 million capital campaign,[10] and oversaw over $80 million in campus facility improvements. He created the President's Diversity Council, enhanced what became a nationally award-winning engagement effort through creation of the Office for Community Partnerships, improved major inter-disciplinary initiatives, and significantly improved business partnerships between the university and business and commodity groups in Idaho and throughout the Northwest.[11]

As UI president, Nellis was a member of the BCS Presidential Oversight Committee.[12] As a nationally recognized higher education leader, he has served as a commissioner for the Northwest Commission of Colleges and Universities (one of 8 nationally recognized accreditation bodies).[13] He also served as a Governor-appointed commissioner of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education, which coordinates higher education efforts for the 15 western states, and has been involved in various national committees for the Association of Public and Land-Grant Universities (APLU).[14]

Nellis was announced as the final candidate for the presidency of Texas Tech University on March 1, 2013.[15] According to news reports, he was recruited for the position, and had not applied.[16] On March 22, the Texas Tech Board of Regents unanimously confirmed him as the university's next president, effective June 15.[17]

During his tenure, Nellis promoted moving Texas Tech University forward toward higher levels of national prominence as a major public research university. He has advocated for continued quality enrollment growth (including stronger advocacy for national and international student recognition), accelerated research expenditures and faculty recognitions, creating a more engaged institution while promoting industry and community partnerships, with a commitment toward global connections and creativity while seeking external revenue sources to invest in the university enterprise.[18] Under Nellis' leadership, Texas Tech was named in 2014 an APLU Innovation and Economic Prosperity University. Texas Tech also achieved Tier One Carnegie Designation for the highest research category at the conclusion of his presidential term.[19]

Nellis also served as a tenured university honors professor while working on broader university strategic initiatives. From 2013 to 2017, Nellis was a trustee of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges.

In 2017, Nellis was announced as the next president of Ohio University on February 22,[20] and he officially took office on June 12 in Athens.

Since arriving at Ohio University, Nellis has worked with the university community and Board of Trustees to develop key strategic pathways[21] as the university adjusts to a new watershed moment in higher education that has challenged university structure and finances, now further compounded by the COVID 19 virus. With the virus cancelling in-person classes, the university moved completely virtual with course offering for the first time in its history through the Spring and Summer terms 2020.[22]

Prior to the virus and continuing through the rest of the 2020 academic year, Nellis helped lead, in collaboration with others in the university community, a number of key successes. Nellis created the Strategy and Innovation Office by uniting the Office of Instructional Innovation, University Planning and the Office of Information Technology. The new office is designed to bring substantial focus to advancing strategic priorities and creating new opportunities for academic innovation.[23] Significant progress continues with the OneOHIO initiative to better align regional higher education within Ohio University with the Athens campus. The most recent four-year graduation rate for the Athens first-time full time entering cohort reached 51.1%, the highest in 18 years. The University received the 2019 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity (HEED) Award from INSIGHT Into Diversity Magazine for the second consecutive year, recognizing an outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion.[24] Three students were named as Goldwater Scholars by The Barry Goldwater Scholarship and Excellence in Education Foundation, the highest number of Ohio University students to receive the award in 12 years. A new General Education Curriculum was approved by the faculty senate, the first new such curriculum in 41 years. The university’s Office of Communication and Marketing developed a new branding campaign which recognizes OHIO University as having the nations best return on experience. And the university raised, in commitments and gifts, the largest single year amount in a non-major advancement campaign year in history (exceeding $40 million).

Nellis is currently a member of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities Commission on Economic and Community Engagement Executive Committee.[25]

On May 4, 2020, the Ohio University Faculty Senate approved a vote of no confidence (44 to 11) in Nellis and Vice President for Finance Deborah Shaffer following an announcement from the president's office that 140 positions at the university would be cut as part of a budget reduction plan. The faculty senate accused Nellis of "leading the university to a budget crisis, made much worse by the coronavirus pandemic."[26]

Ohio University had been facing "significant" budget shortfalls due to declining enrollment and in March 2020, Nellis announced that the university's academic colleges would have to make $26 million in budget cuts through 2023 and that administrative cuts amounting to $8 million would have to be made with no timeline on the latter.[27]

Although the faculty senate vote was nonbinding, a petition was created that had nearly 200 signatures by March 4 and by March 6 the petition neared 600 signatures. The OU Trustees maintained their support of both Nellis and Shaffer per a statement issued on May 11.[28]