Public Reception for New UW President May 17 in Worland

Big Horn Basin residents will have an opportunity to meet new University of Wyoming President Laurie Nichols during a public reception Tuesday, May 17, at the Washakie Museum and Cultural Center in Worland.

The event, hosted by the UW Alumni Association and the Worland Rotary Club, will run from 4-6 p.m. Nichols is scheduled to give brief remarks at 5:30 p.m.

Light refreshments and beverages will be served.

Tuesday’s event is part of a two-day trip to the Big Horn Basin that will include a stop at Northwest College in Powell and meetings with local public school administrators, legislators and media representatives.

During her first months in office, Nichols plans to spend a day or two of each week traveling around the state to meet with citizens, community college and public school leaders, legislators, alumni, media and others.

“I’m looking forward to getting around the state to meet with people and hear their thoughts and expectations for Wyoming’s university,” says Nichols, who begins her duties as president May 16. “This is a crucial time for the state and UW, and input from the public is important to make sure the university fulfills its land-grant mission of education, research and service to the entire state.”

Nichols comes to UW from South Dakota State University, where she has served as provost and executive vice president since 2009. Before that, she was dean of the SDSU College of Education and Human Sciences from 1994 to 2008. She began her career in higher education as a member of the faculty of the University of Idaho from 1988 to 1994.

Nichols was born and raised in South Dakota. A first-generation college graduate, she received a bachelor’s degree in education from South Dakota State in 1978. She then earned a master’s degree in vocational and adult education from Colorado State University in 1984 and a Ph.D. in family and consumer sciences education from Ohio State University in 1988.