Christian Hardigree selected as next regional chancellor of University of South Florida St. Petersburg campus
College of South Florida President Rhea Law announced these days that Christian Hardigree
will be the following regional chancellor of the USF St. Petersburg campus. Hardigree,
who most a short while ago served as the founding dean of the Faculty of Hospitality at Metropolitan
Condition College (MSU) of Denver, will get started her new function at USF on July 1, 2022.
“We are thrilled to welcome Christian Hardigree, a leader who brings a shown
history of tutorial and administrative expertise, as effectively as an fantastic document
of serving the communities she has been a part of all over her job,” Law explained.
“I am self-assured she will be an remarkable advocate for the St. Petersburg campus
and a dependable companion to me as we perform together to go on the College of South
Florida’s remarkable momentum.”
Hardigree led the changeover for the MSU Faculty of Hospitality to turn out to be a no cost-standing
college, utilizing departmental constructions, a strategic approach and other initiatives.
She secured much more than $3.7 million in exterior cash to assistance the faculty, which
is the most significant hospitality software in the location, and led faculty as a result of curriculum
redesign of 6 degrees and majors, eight minors and 9 certificates.
Hardigree also produced and oversaw a assortment of variety, equity and inclusion
initiatives that assisted to increase the Black, indigenous, people of colour (BIPOC)
student inhabitants by additional than 8 p.c. She built, released and funded an initiative
to transition 80 per cent of classes to benefit from open instruction methods, which make
mastering products extra accessible and help level the participating in area for traditionally
underrepresented pupils.
Prior to her part at MSU, Hardigree served as the founding director and professor
of the Institute for Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality at Kennesaw State College
(KSU) in Georgia. Whilst there, she aided to protected a $5 million present, at the time
the largest personal reward in KSU historical past, renaming the institute to the Michael A.
Leven Faculty of Culinary Sustainability and Hospitality. She led a number of layout teams
in the generation of state-of-the-artwork understanding spaces, together with a new Academic Understanding
Centre and Hospitality/Culinary Lab building, oversaw 50 faculty and staff members and grew
the application to close to 800 full-time learners.
Hardigree was a professor at the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) in the William
F. Harrah University of Hospitality from 2001-2012, working up to become section chair
of Hotel Administration. She held numerous administrative roles at UNLV which includes the associate
dean for strategic initiatives in the School of Lodge Administration, assistant president
and main of personnel for the university president and associate athletic director for
local community engagement and special assignments.
“I certainly fell in love with the college, team, students and neighborhood users
I fulfilled at USF St. Petersburg,” Hardigree reported. “It’s plainly a specific put, and I’m
thrilled to have the possibility to direct these types of a lively campus. I just can’t wait to get
began and am honored by the confidence that President Legislation and other associates of the
USF leadership team are showing in me.”
Hardigree’s choice arrives just after a countrywide lookup course of action that included a major
total of community engagement. USF school, staff, students and group customers
delivered feedback at numerous details all through the search system, together with town hall
meetings with the closing a few candidates, who each individual visited the campus and also interviewed
with Regulation earlier this thirty day period.
“Chancellor Hardigree brings a persuasive mix of energy, enthusiasm and working experience
to this crucial situation,” mentioned Melissa Seixas, chair of the USF St. Petersburg Campus
Advisory Board and a member of the USF Board of Trustees. “With a lot more than 20 decades
expended in increased education, she has the knowledge and understanding vital to acquire
our distinct campus to even increased heights. I am confident USF St. Petersburg
will continue on to flourish underneath Chancellor Hardigree’s management.”
Hardigree gained a bachelor of science, cum laude, from UNLV. She went on to acquire
her juris doctorate from Walter F. George College of legislation at Mercer University and worked
for Parnell & Associates as a senior litigation attorney and lover concentrating on employment
discrimination, arbitration, mediation and labor-administration relations.
Hardigree will be changing Regional Chancellor Martin Tadlock, who right after five several years
of major the campus will be returning to a instructing job in the USF Higher education of Training.
Hardigree’s full resume is readily available below. A photograph of Hardigree is available here.
Far more facts about USF’s St. Petersburg campus regional chancellor lookup is available here.