Dr. Hank Bounds, the Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning's (IHL) preferred candidate for the next Commissioner of Higher Education, will be at the IHL Executive Office complex on Wednesday, June 17, 2009, to participate in open interviews with various constituency groups. Participants will have an opportunity to provide written feedback to the Board. At noon, as noted on the schedule below, the Board will meet to determine if Dr. Bounds is the next Commissioner of Higher Education, or if the search will continue.

All events will be held at the Universities Center, 3825 Ridgewood Road, Jackson, MS 39211, and are open to the media. The schedule is as follows:

8:00 - 8:45 a.m. Meeting with IHL Executive Office staff; IHL Board Room

9:00 - 9:45 a.m. *Meeting with university faculty, staff, students, and alumni; IHL Board Room

10:00 - 10:45 a.m. Meeting with the Institutional Executive Officers (IEOs); IEO Cabinets; and Commissioner's Cabinet; IHL Board Room

11:00 - 11:45 a.m. *Meeting with state officials and others, including the general public; IHL Board Room

Noon - 1:30 p.m. **Lunch meeting of the Board of Trustees; IHL Board Lounge

1:30 p.m. *Press Conference

* Events will be webcast live. A link will be available from the IHL home page: www.mississippi.edu/ihl.

**An executive session may be held in accordance with the Open Meetings Act.

IHL's executive officer search process allows Mississippi to be on the consideration list of the highest caliber professionals in higher education. The process is open, transparent and representative-based, and works in accordance with today's recruitment standards for high-level institutions of higher learning. For more information on IHL's executive officer search process, including search-specific timelines of events, visit www.mississippi.edu/ieo.

The Mississippi Board of Trustees of State Institutions of Higher Learning governs the public universities in Mississippi, including Alcorn State University; Delta State University; Jackson State University; Mississippi State University including the Mississippi State University Division of Agriculture, Forestry and Veterinary Medicine; Mississippi University for Women; Mississippi Valley State University; the University of Mississippi including the University of Mississippi Medical Center; and the University of Southern Mississippi.

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