Western State College in Gunnison didn't waste any time in naming a new president after Dr. Harry Peterson, who announced plans to retire effective Feb. 15.
Jay Helman, vice-president for academic affairs at Western, was named president on Feb. 8 by the Board of Trustees. Peterson had been president of Western since 1996.
WSC faces a $1.7 million budget reduction for next year, and that has caused staff reductions with increased workloads for those remaining.
A major part of the budget problem is enrollment -- WSC's enrollment has been nearly static for years -- and retention, with many students attending WSC for a year or two and then transferring to other schools.
So Helman will have his work cut out for him.