Three finalists for the associate vice president of student engagement position will make their case to students and faculty over the next two weeks through a series of forums and presentations.

The associate vice president will report to Student Affairs Vice President Mary Jo Gonzales as well as oversee the Office of Access, Equity and Achievement, Health and Wellness Services and Student Involvement.

Candidate Latricia Brand, the first to visit Pullman’s campus, is currently the interim dean of student development at Portland Community College. She previously served as associate dean of student engagement at Lewis & Clark State College as well as associate director of undergraduate initiatives at the University of Arizona, according to her curriculum vitae.

She will present at 3:10 p.m. today in the Chinook Student Center, Room 25 and will also meet with students between 12:15-1:30 p.m. Tuesday in the CUB Junior Ballroom.

Her research has focused on inclusion in higher education, civic engagement and peer-to-peer mentoring in first-generation achievement. She earned her bachelor’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis and her master’s in educational psychology from Rutgers University.

Finalist Michael Preston, executive director of the Florida Consortium of Metropolitan Research Universities, will speak to faculty and staff at 3:10 p.m. Wednesday in Butch’s Den and students at 12:15 p.m. in the Chinook Student Center, Room 150. Preston has previously served as a director of student involvement for the University of Central Florida and has worked in higher education for 20 years, according to his curriculum vitae.

Preston was a first-generation student who graduated from East Carolina University, and earned his doctorate in higher education and administration from Texas A&M University-Commerce.

According to the Student Affairs website, the third finalist will be announced Thursday and will meet with students March 28-29.

Comments on the candidates, which can be submitted through on online survey linked on the WSU Student Affairs website, will be due April 4 by 5 p.m. Gonzales and the search committee will review the anonymous feedback.