William Flores is leaving his job as deputy secretary of higher education to be president of the University of Houston-Downtown.
“We are very fortunate to have found a leader of Dr. Flores’ caliber who is an excellent fit with the vision and mission of UH-Downtown. He has a depth of experience in every category of specific interest for us,” University of Houston System Chancellor Renu Khator said in a news release.
Flores is the former provost at New Mexico State University and also served as interim president for a time. He had Gov. Bill Richardson’s backing in 2004 to become NMSU president, but the regents instead picked Michael Martin, who has since also moved on.
Richardson hired Flores for the Santa Fe job in 2007, but he also stayed on at NMSU in a limited role.
Flores was caught up that year in a controversy over three Richardson officials who also pulled double duty at universities that helped pay their salaries. Ultimately, the attorney general said it was illegal for Flores and the other two to work in the Santa Fe jobs and as employees of the institutions they helped govern.
Flores, who starts the new job July 1, said in the Houston news release that he is a “firm believer that a successful president of any public university today must be visionary, with good communication skills. A president must be able to work with a wide variety of constituencies and be successful in building partnerships.”
“Urban universities, such as the University of Houston-Downtown, must not only lead the university, but also engage the university with its surrounding community,” he said. “University campuses are vibrant centers of art and intellectual growth, but they have an opportunity and an obligation to take part in the city in which they are a part.”