K-State's search for a provost and senior vice president has ended.

On Tuesday, K-State announced April Mason, current dean of the College of Applied Human Sciences at Colorado State University in Fort Collins, Colo. She will arrive at K-State and begin her work as provost and senior vice president in early 2010.

John English, dean of the College of Engineering and chair of the provost and senior vice presidential search committee, said many factors went into making a recommendation to K-State President Kirk Schulz, who ultimately offered the position to Mason. These factors included interviews, bringing the candidates to campus, discussions with the committee and evaluating the online surveys filled out by faculty, staff and students at K-State.

"We spent an extended meeting going through the data, discussed the candidates and made our recommendation to the president," English said.

A great deal of time and consideration went in to making the committee's recommendation, which they presented to Schulz last Monday, English said. There were four candidates up for the position, and each gave a presentation earlier in the year. Mason, who accepted the position on Friday, was the first to present to the public.

"They're all wonderful people, and it was the responsibility that the committee took very seriously to be very careful and look at the strengths and weaknesses and provide a discussion," English said.

President Schulz said he met with the search committee to talk about the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate prior to making his decision.

"I was looking for a person with a broad skill set at a land-grant university," Schulz said. "I was looking for an individual that would complement my leadership style and would be an important member of our cabinet and sort of our executive leadership team and, if at all possible, we sort of wanted to put together a more diverse cabinet. And if you added all those things together, I felt that April was the right choice for us."

During Mason's presentation on Oct. 27, she identified what she thought were the qualities necessary to be the provost and senior vice president. Among those were representing leadership; overseeing a diverse academic institution; flexibility; promoting the vision and mission of a land-grant institution; advocacy on behalf of K-State; being engaged at local, state, national and international levels; being fiscally responsible; communicating well; being a team player; knowing one's self and limits; and, above all, having integrity.

Mason currently oversees the operations of six departments and three schools with about 100 tenure-track faculty, many special appointment and adjunct faculty, 4,000 undergraduates and 850 graduate students at CSU. Additionally, she is a professor in the Department of Food Science and Human Nutrition.

Before joining CSU in 2004, Mason was associate dean for extension and associate dean for discovery and engagement in the College of Consumer and Family Sciences at Purdue University.

While at Purdue, she conducted research in the area of trace mineral availability from plant foods. She also taught in the cooperative extension program at Purdue for 20 years.

"I think she brings that experience as an administrator of two other land-grant universities," Schulz said. "I also think she brings a lot of enthusiasm and energy and a real passion for serving as provost... She's got a depth of experience as dean and earlier in her career with extension. So if you add all that together, she was about as perfect of a candidate as we could hope for."

Though Mason has a fair background with the structure of land-grant institutions, she said she is ready to find out what sets K-State apart from other institutions.

Mason will replace M. Duane Nellis as provost and senior vice president, who left K-State in June to become president of the University of Idaho. Associate Provost Ruth Dyer is currently serving as interim provost.

Mason said Dyer and herself recently had dinner together and discussed what awaited her as provost and senior vice president.

"We had a very good conversation of exciting things that are coming up and in the works that I'm excited to get started with," Mason said. "The first goal that I have is to get to know the university."

Mason said though she only has spent three days on campus, she has several ideas already concerning meetings, college visits and getting to know the many university departments.

According to a letter from President Schulz, Mason's yearly salary will be $305,000. She also will receive standard state health, retirement and life insurance benefits.

According to an additional letter from Schulz, Mason also will receive money for moving expenses; access to the Provost's expense account; use of the university aircraft for official business purposes; two tickets to all football, men's basketball and women's basketball games, additional athletic tickets for guests; a membership to the Manhattan Country Club; a refurbished office in line with her specifications; desktop and laptop computers of her choosing; a reserved parking space behind Anderson Hall; access to other discretionary funds; $2,500 to cover travel between Manhattan and Fort Collins, where she presently lives; and temporary housing.

Mason said she is very excited to join the K-State faculty.

"I'm just honored to have been offered and accepted this position and am looking forward to serving the Kansas State University community," Mason said.