Montana Western Appoints Dr. Estee Aiken As Interim Provost

The University of Montana Western is pleased to announce that it has appointed Dr. Estee Aiken as Interim Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs effective starting December 27, 2025, and would also like to express its sincere gratitude to Dr. Brian Elliott who has served as Interim Provost for the past seven months.

“I want to extend my sincere appreciation to Dr. Elliott for his dedication and steady leadership while serving in this role. His service has been invaluable to our campus community,” said Montana Western Chancellor, Michael Reid. 

Dr. Elliott earned his B.S. in Computer Science and English from Muskingum University and his M.A. and Ph.D. in English from Ohio University. His research and teaching interests include early American literature, British and Transatlantic Romanticism, satire, and mythology and folklore, and his current research explores the role of lying and deception in early American novels. At Montana Western, he teaches courses in graphic novels, American literature, fantasy and science fiction, and composition.

“Thank you to Chancellor Reid and the entire UMW community for the opportunity to serve our campus over the last several months. I hope that some of what I’ve been able to accomplish as Interim Provost has a lasting impact on the university for our faculty, staff, and students, now and in the future. In choosing to step back into my faculty role at this point, I can continue much of that work while also leaving the Provost position in Dr. Aiken’s excellent care.”“

I am also grateful to Dr. Aiken for her willingness to step into this role. She will serve as Interim Provost until our next permanent Provost is identified,” said Reid.  

Dr. Aiken earned a Bachelor of Arts in Music from Macalester College, in St. Paul, Minnesota, followed by a Master of Arts in Teaching Elementary School from Colorado College. She earned her Doctor of Education in Education Studies from the University of Northern Colorado. 

Dr. Aiken currently serves as Montana Western’s Dean of Strategic Initiatives overseeing the School of Outreach, the Office of Sponsored Programs, and university accreditation efforts. Before her role as Dean, she served as the Division Chair of Education at Montana Western, where she was a tenured professor.  She has also been actively involved at the state level in roles including Montana Council of Deans of Education, Montana University System Teacher Scholar 2022-23, past President of the Montana Association of Colleges for Teacher Education, and President of the Montana Association of Gifted and Talented Education. In her current role, Dr. Aiken is involved in many state-wide initiatives to address dual-enrollment efforts, workforce preparation, undergraduate research, policy development, and artificial intelligence. She is a founding and current board member of the Odyssey Early Learning Center. Additionally, Dr. Aiken has a wide variety of experience in grants authorship and project management and has published several peer reviewed publications.

“I am very excited for the opportunity to serve as UMW’s Interim Provost. This is an important time for Western, as we finalize our next strategic plan and look to what the future may hold, and I’m honored to help to guide that work,” said Aiken.

The University of Montana Western will undertake the permanent Provost search process once its next Chancellor is in place. The national search to identify UMW’s next Chancellor, a key leader in advancing the university’s distinctive educational mission and supporting students, faculty, staff, and the surrounding community has officially been launched. To learn more about the search—including the timeline, committee members, and the executive search firm assisting with the effort—please visit: https://www.umwestern.edu/chancellor-search/.