Minnesota State Chancellor Devinder Malhotra Elected Treasurer of Midwestern Higher Education Compact

MINNEAPOLIS, MN– Minnesota State Chancellor Devinder Malhotra was elected the treasurer of the Midwestern Higher Education Compact (MHEC) on November 9, during the commission’s Annual Commission Meeting, held virtually due to the pandemic.

One of four regional higher education compacts in the United States, MHEC brings together midwestern states to develop and support best practices, collaborative efforts, and cost-sharing opportunities. Through these efforts it works to ensure strong, equitable postsecondary educational opportunities and outcomes for all.

“I am pleased to welcome Dr. Malhotra as our newest executive officer,” said Susan Heegaard, MHEC president. “His strong and strategic leadership of Minnesota’s largest, diverse provider of higher education will be an asset to MHEC and to the oversight of the Compact’s finances.

Also elected were Dr. David Eisler, president of Ferris State University in Michigan, who will serve as chair, and Rep. Rick Carfagna, subcommittee chair of the House Finance in the Ohio House of Representatives, who will serve as vice chair.

“It is an honor and a privilege to have been selected to serve as an officer of this vital organization,” said Malhotra, chancellor of Minnesota State. “I look forward to continuing our work with colleagues throughout the Midwest on our shared focus of enhancing access, promoting student success, and addressing the region’s most pressing challenges in higher education.”

MHEC’s states are synonymous with the Midwest census region states, and Minnesota has been a member since the Compact’s creation in 1991. Dr. Malhotra, who has served as a MHEC commissioner since 2017. He is joined by additional Minnesota commissioners: Sen. Paul T. Anderson, chair of the Higher Education Finance and Policy for the Minnesota Senate; Rep. Connie Bernardy, chair of the Higher Education Finance and Policy Division for the Minnesota House of Representatives; Dr. Karen Hanson, former executive vice president and provost for the University of Minnesota; and Mr. Dennis Olson, commissioner for the Minnesota Office of Higher Education. Rep. Lyndon Carlson, DFL-lead on the Ways and Means Committee for the Minnesota House of Representatives, and Mr. Paul Cerkvenik, president of the Minnesota Private College Council, serve as commissioner alternates.

ABOUT MINNESOTA STATE
Minnesota State includes 30 community and technical colleges and seven state universities serving approximately 340,000 students. It is the third-largest system of two-year colleges and four-year universities in the United States.

ABOUT MHEC
VISION: MHEC members collaborate to address the region’s most pressing challenges in higher education and transform educational opportunities so that people and communities thrive.
MISSION: MHEC brings together midwestern states to develop and support best practices, collaborative efforts, and cost-sharing opportunities. Through these efforts it works to ensure strong, equitable postsecondary educational opportunities and outcomes.
HOW MHEC WORKS: MHEC’s strategic approach highlights member states’ strong desire for collaboration, effectiveness, and efficiency. MHEC believes that collaborative actions informed by research and best practices are the catalyst for improving quality, accessibility, relevance, and affordability of postsecondary educational opportunities. MHEC does this primarily through the following approaches: convenings, programs, research, and cost-savings contracts. Increasingly, MHEC looks to leverage these approaches in conjunction with each other to serve its strategic priorities.
MEMBER STATES: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin. www.mhec.org
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Contact
Mary Roberson
MHEC Senior Director of Communications and Marketing
maryr@mhec.org
(612) 677-2765 direct | (612) 805-3396 cell