LITTLE ROCK — Four candidates for University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff chancellor will visit the campus to interview for the position by early February, the University of Arkansas System said Monday.

The candidates are Laurence Alexander, associate dean of the graduate school at the University of Florida; Everette Freeman, president of Albany State University; Kim Luckes, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Norfolk State University; and Robert Mock, vice president for student affairs at the University of Kentucky.

The candidates will each visit UAPB for two days of meetings with students, faculty and staff members, and the Pine Bluff community, said UA System President Donald Bobbitt, who is leading the search with the help of a committee and a search firm.

“The high quality of these candidates is a testament to the work of our committee and to the attractiveness of the position as chancellor of this fine university,” Bobbitt said in a news release. “We are looking forward to getting to know them better as we move into the final stages of this process.”

Once selected, the new leader of the 2,800-student, historically black university will replace former Chancellor Lawrence Davis Jr., who retired in May after 21 years at UAPB’s helm.

Former UAPB dean and state Rep. Calvin Johnson, D-Pine Bluff, has served as interim chancellor since Davis’ departure.

Search firm Greenwood, Asher and Associates has helped locate applicants under a $70,000 contract with UAPB, which was paid from the university’s operating budget, UA System spokesman Ben Beaumont said. That contract also allows for up to $30,000 in expenses, such as travel for candidates and search consultants, he said.

Bobbitt selected the candidates with the assistance of a committee led by Robert McGehee, a UAPB graduate, Pine Bluff native and dean of the Graduate School at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences.

Alexander, who is also the director of the Office of Graduate Minority Programs and a journalism professor at the University of Florida, received a bachelor’s degree in drama and communications from the University of New Orleans, a master’s degree in journalism and communications from the University of Florida, a law degree from Tulane University and doctorate in higher education from Florida State University.

Alexander said in his application that he is attracted to UAPB “for its location, the significant engagement and partnerships, and the opportunities they present for fundraising.”

Freeman, who previously served as senior vice president and provost at the University of Indianapolis and as executive assistant to the president at Tennessee State University, received bachelor’s degrees in sociology and economics from Antioch College, a master’s in labor and industrial relations from the University of Illinois and a doctorate in education foundations from Rutgers University.

In his application, he said his experience as a registered Georgia lobbyist demonstrated his comfort communicating with lawmakers.

Luckes, who has served as interim president of Norfolk State, has a bachelor’s degree in political science from Elizabeth City State University and a law degree from North Carolina Central University School of Law. If selected, she would be the first female chancellor of a four-year university in the UA System.

“As a graduate of two public historically black institutions, I was educated to achieve;to appreciate the value and power of a comprehensive education,” Luckes said in her application.

Mock, who previously worked as an administrator at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, has a bachelor’s degree in industrial engineering from Southern Illinois University, a master’s in interpersonal and organization communication, and a doctorate in higher education administration from UALR.

In his application, Mock cited his familiarity with the UA System as a strength.

Luckes will visit UAPB on Jan. 22 and 23, Mock on Jan. 24 and 25, Alexander on Jan. 29 and 30, and Freeman on Feb. 5 and 6.

Arkansas, Pages 9 on 01/08/2013