There’s been a shakeup in East Carolina University’s senior staff, with Chancellor Philip Rogers replacing replaced the institution’s provost and general counsel.
In a Thursday email to ECU faculty and staff, Rogers said he’s installed music professor Chris Buddo as interim provost and made Meagan Kiser the interim general counsel. Buddo is a former dean of the College of Fine Arts and Communication. Kiser had been deputy counsel.
They replaced former Provost Robin Coger and former General Counsel Paul Zigas, who Rogers said were due “sincere thanks … for their service to the university in their respective leadership roles.”
He added that Buddo and Kiser have his “full confidence” during “this period of transition.
“I will update the campus community on next steps after I have thoughtfully considered the timeline and process to fill both leadership positions permanently,” he added.
The sudden moves came with no further explanation.
As provost, Coger was the university’s chief academic officer and had been on the job since 2022, when Rogers hired her from N.C. A&T State University She had been A&T’s engineering-school dean.
Zigas had been general counsel since the summer of 2021, according to his LinkedIn. He rose through the ranks of ECU’s legal department after joining it in 2004.
ECU has had considerable leadership changes in recent years, with former Chancellor Cecil Staton forced out in 2019 after three years on the job. The school went through two interim chancellors before UNC System President Peter Hans hired Rogers in 2021.
The university has been in the news this week after football coach Mike Houston was dismissed Sunday. He had held the post since 2019.
