Fresno State names new vice president of student affairs to serve as Lamas’ replacement
.jpeg "Kent L. Willis will serve as Fresno State’s next vice president for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, the university announced in a media release Wednesday, Dec. 21, 2022. The position was formerly held by Frank Lamas, until he was removed in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment in 2019.")
Kent L. Willis will serve as Fresno State’s next vice president for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, the seat formerly held by Frank Lamas until he was removed in the wake of allegations of sexual harassment in 2019.
Willis will move cross-country from the University of Texas at Tyler, where he currently works as the graduate school’s assistant vice president and associate dean.
He’ll take over for Carolyn Coon, who is retiring. Coon has served as interim vice president since October 2019.
Fresno State announced Willis’ appointment in a news release.
Willis’ new role includes overseeing campus discipline, enrollment, academic advising, migrant services, and student unions on campus, as well as the department’s staff.
He’ll report to Fresno State President Saúl Jiménez-Sandoval, who praised Willis’ “deep wealth of knowledge.”
“He has a stellar record of leading innovative efforts in enrollment management, student recruitment and outreach, accreditation and institutional effectiveness,” Jiménez-Sandoval said.
Willis acknowledged there are “challenges” that lie ahead as he steps into the role.
“The first thing is that the division requires a person who can lead in a transparent way, but also find points for collaboration,” Willis said. “There’s a committed group of leaders who have been at the institution over time and through challenges who understand very well the needs that exist.”
Lamas was removed from office days after Fresno State received a formal complaint about him alleging sexual harassment. This information — as well as details of how then-Fresno State President and now ex-CSU chancellor Joseph I. Castro mishandled the allegations against his Cabinet member — came to light in a USA Today investigation in February.
An independent investigation into Fresno State’s handling of allegations against Lamas concluded that Lamas’ conduct “created a culture of fear that silenced employees.”
The Lamas situation rocked Fresno State and the CSU system as a whole, as Castro ultimately stepped down from his position as CSU chancellor amid condemnation and calls for an independent investigation into his role in the fiasco.
While not touching on any past controversy in particular, Willis added in the release that he thinks people are “hungry for change and for a new chapter” at the university and “a chance to really begin to move forward some ideas and some innovative approaches that are right for a time such as this.”
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