Dr. Maria Markham to be recommended to lead higher ed

by Talk Business & Politics staff ([email protected]) 625 views 

Dr. Maria Markham, vice chancellor for academic services at Cossatot Community College, has been recommended by a search committee to be the next director of the Arkansas Department of Higher Education.

The recommendation came after the search committee met July 26 in executive session and interviewed Markham and two others: Dr. MacGregor Stephenson, former deputy chief of staff to Texas Governor Rick Perry; and Dr. John Townsend, associate vice chancellor of workforce development for Tennessee’s board of regents.

The search committee will make its recommendations to the Arkansas Higher Education Coordinating Board when it meets Friday.

The current director of the Arkansas Department of Higher Education, Dr. Brett Powell, is leaving his post to become Henderson State University’s vice president for finance and administration.

Also on Friday, the board will consider a new outcomes-based funding formula for higher education that will replace the state’s current enrollment-based formula. The new formula will base funding partially on colleges’ and universities’ success in awarding certificates and degrees rather than simply basing it on enrollment numbers.

Dr. Maria Markham.
Dr. Maria Markham.