Retirees Association

DDN: Being named next WSU president came as a ‘surprise’ to provost Sue Edwards

Susan Edwards

Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News

Wright State University’s next president didn’t know herself she’d be appointed the school’s next leader over the weekend.

In an interview with the Dayton Daily News, Sue Edwards said the decision came as a “surprise.”

Edwards said she thought the university’s board of trustees would use the remainder of the year to decide how they would fill the job. Outgoing president Cheryl Schrader announced earlier this month that she plans to step down Dec. 31.

But, trustees convened Saturday for an executive session, after which they voted to name Edwards as Schrader’s successor.

“I was called to a meeting on Saturday morning and I guess they decided what they were looking for,” Edwards said.

Edwards will officially become Wright State’s eighth president Jan. 1, but trustees have yet to sign off on a contract, spokesman Seth Bauguess said.

Edwards joked that she was feeling a little “dazed and confused,” at how fast trustees moved to hire her. One likely factor in the timing, she said, was wanting to build momentum and keep WSU on track.