Montana Western Provost Search Finalists Announced
- Sep 18
- 4 min read
The University of Montana Western Provost Search Committee is pleased to announce that four finalists will be visiting the UMW campus from September 23 – October 2, 2025.
The four finalists include Charles Tilburg, Justin McBrayer, David Biek, and Bruce Mackh. Each finalist will be visiting UMW to meet with various departments and attend open forums with Montana Western students, faculty, and staff.
Dr. Charles Tilburg currently serves as the Director of the School of Marine and Environmental Programs and the Doherty Chair of Marine Sciences Research at the University of New England, located on the coast of Maine. With more than 20 years of experience in higher education, he is recognized for his strategic leadership, collaborative approach, and commitment to student and faculty success. Under his direction, the School has become his university’s largest academic unit, with enrollment growth exceeding 60%, innovative curricular reforms, and more than $5.6 million raised in philanthropic support.
Dr. Tilburg’s career includes extensive experience in academic administration, interdisciplinary research, and external engagement. He has held roles as Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences and Director of the Arthur P. Girard Marine Science Center. He has authored over 40 peer-reviewed scientific articles and delivered more than 100 presentations at national and international conferences. His research portfolio includes more than $5 million in external funding, supported by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). His work has involved collaboration with state and federal agencies, nonprofit organizations, and private industry on initiatives related to coastal resilience, workforce development, and applied science.
Dr. Tilburg has led personnel processes for faculty and staff, mentored early-career professionals, and facilitated cross-functional teams in academic planning and institutional initiatives. He has experience navigating complex challenges, including accreditation, budget management, and program development. His leadership approach emphasizes shared goals, transparent communication, and professional development across all levels of the institution. Outside of his professional life, Dr. Tilburg enjoys skiing, rock climbing, mountain biking, and hiking – usually accompanied by his two Siberian huskies. He currently lives in Maine with his wife and two children.
David Biek is the founding Dean of the School of Education and Behavioral Sciences at Middle Georgia State University. David earned his doctorate in developmental psychology at Cornell University and completed his master’s work at Columbia.
His scholarly and applied work is focused on understanding the informal factors behind academic achievement. David has served as co-chair for MaconAIM, a human service collaborative, as a board member for Carlyle Place – Atrium/Navicent Health in Macon, and has organized a community-wide Thrive Summit in the middle Georgia region.
He also serves on the statewide Executive Council for AARP Georgia. David lives in Forsyth, GA with his wife and three children.
Dr. Justin McBrayer is Professor of Philosophy and former Associate Dean, Provost’s Fellow, and member of the Board of Trustees at Fort Lewis College, a regional comprehensive college in Durango, Colorado. He holds a Master’s Degree from the University of Montana and a Ph.D. from the University of Missouri. Dr. McBrayer’s academic interests span a wide range of topics, from social epistemology to ethics, and he is a nationally recognized expert on the nature, origins, and harms of fake news. He is a frequent contributor to public discourse on philosophical issues and a prominent advocate for open inquiry and free speech in higher education. He is a two-time Fulbright professor, once at the University of Innsbruck, Austria and a second appointment at the University of Genoa, Italy.
Dr. McBrayer and his family lived on the Fort Lewis campus for five years as faculty-in-residence, and he has taken students on study abroad courses to four different countries. As a teacher, Dr. McBrayer has offered a wide array of courses from ethics to logic to philosophy of religion. His goal is to help students to think philosophically about the important questions in their lives, with a focus on learning how to interpret others charitably and evaluate arguments rigorously. As an administrator, Dr. McBrayer’s work is centered on student success. Notable wins include converting temporary faculty lines to permanent ones, developing outdoor classrooms to keep campus open for in-person learning during the COVID-19 pandemic, building a Washington, DC internship program, and securing permanent space for a Grub Hub that serves students facing food-insecurity. Dr. McBrayer was the Executive Director of his professional association, the Society of Christian Philosophers where he increased membership, raised over $400k for an endowment, and worked to convert the society’s scholarly journal from a subscription-based, hardcopy service to open-access and online, expanding global readership tenfold.
Bruce M. Mackh, Ph.D., is a seasoned higher education leader whose career spans more than a decade of academic and student affairs leadership at institutions ranging from regional comprehensives to R1 research universities. Most recently, he has served as Vice Provost for Assessment and Chief Accreditation Officer at Wright State University, where he led academic planning, general education, program prioritization, institutional assessment, and accreditation compliance. His work included designing new degree programs, implementing multi-term registration and block scheduling to improve first-year persistence, and aligning program offerings with workforce needs and strategic priorities.
Prior to his service at Wright State, Dr. Mackh was the Associate Vice President of Teaching and Learning at Chadron State College, where he oversaw student support services, including the library, writing center, disability services, tutoring, and career services, while revitalizing the Teaching and Learning Center and improving retention. He also served as Department Head at Valdosta State University, leading initiatives in curriculum redesign, faculty development, and enrollment growth. His earlier roles include Dean of Faculty at Rocky Mountain College of Art + Design and directing two graduate programs at Michigan State University.
After beginning his higher education journey as a first-generation, adult commuter student, Dr. Mackh is passionate about expanding access and ensuring that every student has the opportunity to succeed. His leadership commitments are guided by his dedication to experiential learning, faculty empowerment, and student-centered decision-making. He holds a Ph.D. in Critical Studies from Texas Tech University, an MFA from Tulane University, a BFA from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and he is completing an Ed.D. in Higher Education and Student Affairs at St. Cloud State University.
Comments