The Iowa Board of Regents has announced Benjamin Houlton, Ph.D., as one of two finalists in the running for Iowa State University’s next president. 

Houlton will visit campus Wednesday and participate in an open forum in the Memorial Union Great Hall from 4 to 5 p.m. It will be livestreamed by the Board of Regents. The candidate will meet with faculty, staff, students and community members. 

The second finalist will be announced Wednesday before the open forum Thursday.

Houlton is the Dean of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University. He is also a professor in the Departments of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and of Global Development.

Houlton received his Bachelor of Science in water chemistry from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, a Master of Science in environmental engineering science from Syracuse University and a Ph.D. from Princeton University in ecology and evolutionary biology. 

As an environmental scientist, his research includes global ecosystem processes, agricultural sustainability and climate adaptation solutions.

Houlton’s curriculum vitae can be found on Iowa State’s presidential search website.

After this week’s public meetings, the Board of Regents will meet Nov. 11 in a closed session to hear from the search committee co-chairs, interview the finalists and select the next president of ISU.