MnSCU names Leslie Mercer associate vice chancellor for policy and planning

Leslie Mercer, who has been involved with statewide education policy since the early 1980s, has become the associate vice chancellor for policy and planning at the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities.

Mercer is responsible for overseeing the MnSCU research and planning function. She will also be very involved in the strategic planning process, which is now in the initial phase of implementation.

Prior to her MnSCU appointment, Mercer worked for the Minnesota Higher Education Services Office, formerly the Minnesota Higher Education Coordinating Board, for 10 years. She was interim director in 1995 and 1996 and was most recently director of the Division of Data and Programs.

She worked with Minnesota schools to apply the Malcolm Baldrige Total Quality Management Award criteria to education and chaired the Minnesota Quality Initiative designed to provide TQM awareness and training in state government.

Mercer was executive director of the Governor's Commission on Post-Secondary Education and served as research consultant and Education Committee administrator in the Minnesota House of Representatives.

"Leslie Mercer's extensive knowledge of education policy development and implementation, as well as her experiences in state government to advance post-secondary education in Minnesota, make her an ideal candidate for directing MnSCU's policy and planning efforts," said MnSCU Chancellor Judith Eaton.

Mercer holds a Ph.D. in education administration and policy studies from the University of Minnesota and bachelor of arts and bachelor of science degrees from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls. She is a member of the American Association for Higher Education, the Minnesota Quality Initiative and the American Society for Quality Control.