May 18, 2006 - Willimantic, Conn.— Elsa Nuñez, vice chancellor for academic and student affairs of the University of Maine System, was unanimously elected today by the Board of Trustees of the Connecticut State University System as the sixth president of Eastern Connecticut State University.

Nuñez, 58, becomes the first Latina president of a Connecticut state university. She will succeed Michael Pernal, who has been acting as Eastern’s interim president since January 2006. Pernal succeeded David G. Carter, who served as president of Eastern for nearly 18 years before being appointed chancellor of the Connecticut State University System in December 2005. Nuñez will begin her term as president on Aug. 4.

“We are very excited to welcome Dr. Nuñez to Eastern Connecticut State University and the Connecticut State University System,” said Lawrence D. McHugh, chairman of the CSU Board of Trustees, noting that more than 80 applicants for the position were considered during a nationwide search.

“She is an outstanding leader and administrator, and the trustees are confident that she will be an exceptional president who will guide Eastern through what we expect to be a continued era of unprecedented growth and improvement,” McHugh continued. “Dr. Nuñez is an educator who believes strongly in Eastern’s mission, and in serving the needs and interests of our students.”

As vice chancellor since 2003, Nuñez has overseen all academic matters related to the seven universities that make up the University of Maine System. Her responsibilities have included new program approval, faculty reappointments, promotion, tenure, and academic and student policies.

Prior to joining the Maine system, Nuñez served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Lesley University from 1999-2003. She was responsible for the university’s six schools, as well as student affairs, the library and the office of admissions. She joined Lesley from Wheelock College, where she served two years as the vice president for academic affairs and as an English professor. From 1993 to 1997, she was the dean for academic affairs and vice chancellor for student affairs at The City University of New York. She began her career as an instructor in the Upward Bound program in 1970.

Nuñez received a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and English from Montclair State College in 1970. She then earned a master’s degree in English from Farleigh Dickinson University in 1973 and an Ed.D. in linguistics from Rutgers University in 1979.

“Eastern is very fortunate to have Dr. Nuñez as its next president,” said Chancellor Carter. “She is an outstanding individual and administrator, and I am confident that she will excel as president. I join the trustees in welcoming her to the Connecticut State University System, and I look forward to working with her.”

Nuñez, who was born and raised in Puerto Rico, is married to Richard Freeland, who will step down as president of Northeastern University at the end of the current academic year. They have two children, Maria, a medical student at George Washington University, and Antony, an information technology professional who lives and works in New Haven.
Eastern Connecticut State University, founded in 1889, is the state’s public liberal arts university. It has 5,200 students, including 3,800 full-time undergraduate students. It is one of the four universities that make up the Connecticut State University System.

Eastern Connecticut State University is part of the Connecticut State University (CSU) system and is the state’s public liberal arts university. ECSU serves more than 5,000 students each year on its Willimantic campus.