ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — Melissa Gruys, Christian Hardigree, Kanika Tomalin and Bjong Yeigh are the remaining candidates in the race for the regional chancellor position at the University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus after the search committee reduced the list of potential nominees to four on Saturday.
Beginning Monday, the university will be conducting a multi-day town hall event, giving each of its candidates the chance to answer questions from the public.
The elected nominee will serve as the USF St. Pete campus' chief executive officer and report to USF president Rhea Law, who was recently chosen for that position back in late March.
"The university seeks a dynamic and visible leader who is passionate about student success, research and innovation, and the opportunity to serve as an advocate for the university that is deeply embedded in the St. Petersburg community and the region," USF wrote on its website.
Here's a rundown of each candidate according to the university's website
Melissa Gruys
Gruys has experience in academic and administration roles in higher education.
She's currently the dean of the Richard T. Doermer School of Business at Purdue University Fort Wayne and supervises more than 100 workers. Gruys also runs the Student Success Center for professional development, community outreach and academic advising.
Before her time at PFW, she was the chair of the Department of Management and International Business at Wright State University's Raj Soin College of Business. Gruys also led accreditation activities and curriculum development.
Gruys served as a professor at Washington State University-Vancouver, University of Minnesota and Wright State University.
Christian Hardigree
Hardigree is the dean of the School of Hospitality at Metropolitan State University in Denver.
She helped secure more than $3 million in external funds to help the school and faculty with redesigning curriculums of six degrees and majors.
Hardigree was the founding director and professor at the Michael A. Leven School of Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality at Kennesaw State University before her time at MSU.
She also has experience as a senior litigation attorney at Parnell & Associates where she concentrated on employment discrimination, arbitration, labor-management relations and mediation.
Kanika Tomalin
Tomalin is a former deputy mayor for the city of St. Petersburg from 2014 to 2021.
She was also the vice president for strategy and chief operating officer at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg.
Tomalin held the position as a regional vice president of external affairs for the Bayfront Health Network and was director of strategy for Health Management Associates' 23- hospital Florida Group.
Former St. Petersburg mayor Rick Kriseman appointed Tomalin as deputy mayor in 2018 where she was in charge of administrative and operations in the city.
Bjong Yeigh
Yeigh is a former chancellor of the University of Washington Bothell where he saw the school expand from 30 programs to 55.
Before his position at UW, he was the president at the State University of New York Institute of Technology at Utica/Rome. Here, he helped the school receive funding for regional economic development projects.
Yeigh served as a former professor at Oklahoma State University and Yale University.
His other experiences include being the vice president for academic affairs at Norwich University and the dean of the College of Engineering at Saint Louis University.
To learn more about each candidate and the chancellor search, click here.
The search committee consists of deans, professors, executive directors and chief executive officers.
"The regional chancellor of USF’s St. Petersburg campus will have the opportunity to lead a growing campus with a distinctive culture and close ties to the surrounding community," said the university on its website.
