MADISON – Dr. Ann Lydecker, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Bridgewater (MA) State College, was today named the 14th chancellor of the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, effective August 1.
The appointment was made by the UW System Board of Regents during its meeting in Madison. The Board acted on the recommendation of a Special Regents Committee and UW System President Katharine C. Lyall, who interviewed Lydecker and other finalists on February 22.
Lydecker, 55, will succeed Gary Thibodeau, who is currently the longest-serving chancellor in the UW System. He announced last August that he would retire in 2000 after serving 15 years as chancellor of UW-River Falls. Lydecker’s salary will be $140,000.
“Dr. Lydecker is an excellent fit for the position at UW-River Falls,” said Lyall. “Her administrative and faculty experience, both in Massachusetts and Minnesota, have prepared her well for this challenging new role. I very much look forward to working with her.”
Lyall will introduce the new chancellor to UW-River Falls at a news conference on Thursday, March 16 at 10 a.m. in the President Room of the Hagestad Student Center. A community and campus reception will be held from 1:30 – 3:00 p.m. that same day in the Falcon’s Nest of the Hagestad Student Center.
Lydecker has been at Bridgewater State College since 1992. She started as the founding dean of its School of Education and Allied Sciences. Three years later, she was named acting vice president for academic affairs and was permanently appointed to the position in 1996.
Prior to coming to Bridgewater State College, Lydecker was professor and chairperson of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at Mankato (MN) State University. She was there from 1987 to 1992, following seven years as an assistant and associate professor of education at Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota.
Lydecker’s background includes a B.A. degree in psychology (1966) and an M.A.T. degree in elementary education (1972), both from Oberlin College. From 1971 to 1977, she was a school teacher in Oberlin, Ohio and Onsted, Michigan. She received a Ph.D. degree in curriculum and instruction from the University of Michigan in 1982.
Lydecker was born and raised on a dairy farm near Adrian, Michigan. She is married to William Lydecker, and they have four grown sons: Peter Lydecker, Andrew Lydecker, J. Martin Favor and Rich Favor. They also have one grandson, Mitchell Favor.
UW-River Falls was founded in 1874 and is one of 11 comprehensive universities in the statewide UW System. The university enrolls 5,728 students in four areas: the College of Agriculture, Food and Environmental Sciences; College of Arts and Sciences; College of Education and Graduate Studies; and School of Business and Economics. River Falls is a community of 12,000 people, and is located about 25 miles east of Minneapolis-St. Paul.
Contact:
Sharyn Wisniewski, UW System
(608) 262-6448