Murphy interviews for presidency at Pennsylvania University

Dr. Bruce Murphy underwent a series of interviews for the presidency at Slippery Rock University in
Pennsylvania on Wednesday.

Murphy is one of three candidates seeking to fill the vacant presidential seat previously held by Cheryl
Norton, the university’s 16th president who retired in June of this year. Other candidates are Marsha
Krotseng, president of Bluefield State College in West Virginia, and Amir Mohammadi, vice president for
finance, administration and advancement services at SRU.

SRU is a public university seated on a 660-acre campus in Butler County, PA, a community of 3,500
people located north of Pittsburgh. It has a total enrollment of around 8,500 students.

In his cover letter to SRU, Murphy stated that he is “particularly attracted to SRU by the opportunity to
grow an already successful institution capitalizing on my extensive higher education and public sector
experience.”

“You are looking for someone who can collaborate with others involved in higher education leadership,”
Murphy wrote. “My personal and professional life has been defined by relationships, learning,
excellence, and above all service.”

Murphy, as with each candidate, underwent interviews with SRU students, faculty, staff, alumni and
community members. Following his interview, individuals could view his cover letter and curriculum
vitae on the SRU website and offer feedback through an electronic survey.

Krotseng’s interviews took place on Sept. 25, while Mohammadi’s will take place on Sept. 29.
According to the SRU website, “The Search Committee expects to send the names of two candidates to
the council of trustees for approval at their Oct. 5-6 meeting.”

From there, the university will pass those names on to Pennsylvania's State System of Higher Education
board of governors, who will choose a president after additional interviews.

This news is the latest regarding Murphy’s resignation, which the university announced on Sept. 14.

Since the announcement, a search committee held its first meeting and public forum on Sept. 25. The
committee will continue to hold public meetings for students, faculty, staff and community members to
attend.

The Nicholls Worth reached out for an interview with Murphy but was informed that he is “not
comfortable doing an interview yet.”