University of Minnesota announces pick for next Duluth chancellor

The University of Minnesota announced Wednesday that it has picked its next Duluth chancellor: Charles Nies, a higher education administrator based in California, who has Minnesota ties.

The announcement came weeks after Nies and two other finalists appeared at public forums on the U’s Duluth campus, which enrolls about 9,400 students and employs about 1,700 people.

“I am honored to be able to serve in the role of chancellor at the University of Minnesota Duluth — having grown up in Minnesota, this will be a coming home opportunity,” Nies said in a statement.

Interim U President Jeff Ettinger recommended Nies for the job, calling him an “experienced, strategic leader who is ready to tackle UMD’s challenges and celebrate its success.”

If the Board of Regents approves Nies’ selection in May, as is expected, Nies will take over when the campus is trying to navigate a tough time in higher education. Undergraduate enrollment in Duluth has dropped by about 300 students per year since 2018, partially because of the pandemic and because of demographic changes that are leaving many schools in the country with a smaller pool of potential recruits.

Nies currently works as the vice chancellor for student affairs at the University of California, Merced, which enrolls more than 9,000 students. He has been working at the school since 2006 and held multiple leadership roles there. Before that, he worked at Miami University in Ohio and Washington State University.

He earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul and has multiple other degrees, including a doctorate in education administration and leadership from Washington State University.

“I am also excited to join the Duluth and University of Minnesota communities,” Nies said. “UMD is filled with wonderfully creative and brilliant students, faculty and staff, and I look forward to the discovery that has been and will continue to be our mark of excellence.”

Nies is expected to begin work in July. He will take over for interim Chancellor David McMillan, whose own selection was controversial, in part because McMillan had served on the U’s Board of Regents. McMillan applied for the job after an earlier search failed to produce a successor for Chancellor Lendley Black, who retired.

The U said this search drew 54 applicants. In response to a Star Tribune records request, the U said Wednesday that it has so far paid the search firm AGB Search $122,659.03 for assistance. “This does not reflect the total cost, as it takes time to process all the final invoices after the conclusion of the search,” the response said.

The U hasn’t yet released the terms of Nies’ contract, including his salary or the length of his initial term.

Staff writer Jana Hollingsworth contributed to this report.