BATON ROUGE — The Southern University Board of Supervisors announced the formation of a search committee tasked with hiring the school's next president.

The committee consists of the following members:
- Committee Chair Jason W. Hughes, New Orleans City Councilman for District E
- Vice Chair Timothy W. Hardy, attorney and Louisiana Community & Technical College System Board of Supervisors Chairman
- Dale Atkins, 4th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge
- Jody Amedee, attorney
- Sandra Brown, Southern University Vice Chancellor of Health Initiatives 
- Bree Cook, Ph.D., Southern University at New Orleans Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
- Darrin Dixon, Southern University Alumni Federation Executive Director
- Tramelle Howard, J.D., EdTrust State Director and Southern University Quarterback Club President
- Anthony Igiede, Ph.D., Southern University Faculty Senate President
- Sean Inman, Southern University Student Government Association President
- Isaiah Land, Southern University Law Center student
- Eric Lane, President of Gerry Lane Enterprises
- James Stewart, Caddo Parish District Attorney
- Tony Clayton, Southern University Board of Supervisors Chairman and Ex-Officio member
- Reggie Abraham, Southern University Board of Supervisors Vice Chairman and Ex-Officio member

“The selection of our next president marks an important moment in the history of our System,” Clayton said. “This distinguished committee will ensure a thorough, well-structured search reflective of our values as the nation’s only historically black university system.”

The committee will present one to three finalists to the board at its May 2026 meeting, Southern said in a Monday news release. It also said it will launch a website with updates on the search "in early 2026."

The search comes after the university parted ways with Dennis Shields in late 2025.