Colorado State Names Interim Vice Provost and Dean of Agriculture; Permanent Search to be Resumed Later

Colorado State University’s search for a new vice provost and dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences has been put on hold temporarily, and a long-time agricultural educator and administrator has been named to the interim spot.

James C. Heird, associate dean of the college since 1989, will serve as interim vice provost and dean until the national search is resumed.

He takes over from Lee Sommers, who simultaneously held the full-time jobs of vice provost-dean and director of Colorado State’s Agricultural Experiment Station. Sommers will return to the station, continuing to help the College develop its research agenda and serving research needs of the state’s agricultural community.

Heird, who joined Colorado State in 1986, served as teaching coordinator of the equine science program, became interim dean of the agricultural sciences college and finally associate dean and director of academic programs. He has been responsible for instruction, recruitment and retention of agricultural students.

An Eaton resident, Heird holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees from the University of Tennessee and a doctorate in agriculture from Texas Tech University.