Satish K. Tripathi, provost for seven years, is reported to be one of two finalists under consideration for the position of UB's 15th president, according to The Buffalo News.
The Buffalo News ran an article on Thursday, which stated that Tripathi's name had surfaced in recent days as a leading candidate. The other candidate is unknown and is from outside of the university, according to these sources.
Tripathi, who arrived at UB in 2004 from the University of California-Riverside, is a native of India. He formerly served as dean of the Bourns College of Engineering for seven years in California.
SUNY officials said Wednesday that the presidential search was still underway, according to The Buffalo News.
John Della Contrada, assistant vice president for media relations, released the following statement in an e-mail on Thursday:
"It would not be appropriate for the university to comment on speculation regarding specific or potential candidates. The search committee's public statements are online at http://www.buffalo.edu/presidentialsearch."
The Presidential Search Committee, a panel of 15 members of the UB community, has attracted controversy from the United University Professions, the union representing faculty and staff on state campuses.
The UUP questioned how faculty were chosen to be a part of the Presidential Search Committee and raised questions about SUNY guidelines, which state that a small group of finalists should be selected to visit the campus and meet campus and community members, according to The Buffalo News.
Tripathi graduated from Banaras Hindu University and holds master's degrees from Banaras Hindu and the University of Alberta, Canada in statistics. Additionally, Tripathi holds a master's and doctoral degree in computer science from the University of Toronto.
The final decision for UB's next president rests with Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher and the SUNY Board of Trustees, which is scheduled to meet on March 22.
E-mail: news@ubspectrum.com
