This story was originally produced by the Keene Sentinel. NHPR is republishing it in partnership with the Granite State News Collaborative.
The leader of Keene State College on Tuesday announced that she will be stepping down from her role later next month.
Melinda Treadwell, who was appointed as interim president of the college in 2017 and president in 2019, is leaving her post in Keene to lead SUNY Geneseo, a liberal arts college in western New York that's part of the state's public university system. Her appointment at that institution will take effect Oct. 27, a news release from Keene State says.
Treadwell was the college's first alumna president. She graduated in 1990 with a bachelor of science in industrial safety with a minor in chemistry and has a Ph.D. in toxicology and pharmacology from Dartmouth Medical School. She joined the Keene State faculty in 2000.
In 2014, she moved to Antioch University New England, where she became vice president for academic affairs at the Keene graduate school. Two years later, she was appointed provost, the highest leadership position at the university. She returned to Keene State in 2017.
“I have cherished the experience of leading my alma mater and capping a quarter century of service to Keene State and the University System of New Hampshire,” Treadwell said in the news release. “ … I am proud of my legacy of responsiveness and success, and I am confident that Keene State College is well-positioned to continue to be a critical asset to the state and to the surrounding regions.”
USNH Chancellor Catherine Provencher said the USNH Board will announce transition plans in the coming weeks.
Treadwell leaves Keene State as the college and the University System of New Hampshire grapples with a collective $18 million budget cuts. Keene State's share of the cuts comes up to roughly $3 million.
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