Karen Morse, provost at Utah State University, was named president of Western Washington University on Friday.
Morse, 52, succeeds Kenneth P. Mortimer, who became president and chancellor at the University of Hawaii in March."She's a great lady, and the folks up there are getting a great administrator," said USU President George Emert. "We're losing a very fine person."
Morse was chosen from a nationwide pool of more than 100 candidates, said Mary Kay Becker, chairman of Western Washington University's trustees.
"We see in Dr. Morse just the right combination of energy, proven academic leadership, dedication to the student experience, commitment to lifelong learning and unquestionable character," Becker said Friday in a prepared statement.
WWU, with about 10,000 students, is the third largest university in the state.
Morse has served as provost of the 15,000-student Logan campus since 1989. Prior to that, she was dean of the university's College of Science, head of the chemistry and biochemistry department and a professor of chemistry. She has taught at Utah State since 1968.
A native of Monroe, Mich., Morse earned her doctorate and master's degree in chemistry at the University of Michigan and her bachelor's degree at Denison University in Ohio.
"We chose each other, and I look forward to a long and fruitful partnership in making Western an even better place for students, faculty and the supportive citizens of this region," Morse said in a prepared statement Friday.