Dene Thomas
Fort Lewis College is welcoming its first female president.
Dene Thomas was in Durango on Friday for a reception on campus. The school announced last week that she would succeed Brad Bartel as president.
Thomas has been president of Lewis-Clark State College since 2001. She steps into her new post July 1.
She takes over as Fort Lewis College faces a cut of more than 30 percent in state funding. It also is under a state mandate not to raise nonresident tuition. The condition is tied to the school’s policy of offering any qualified Native American a tuition-free education. (AP)
