PABLO — Dr. Luana Ross has been named the next president of Salish Kootenai College.

SKC board chair Bob Fouty said Ross accepted the job on Dec. 24, and will take over as the college’s head in July.

Ross, an enrolled CSKT member currently working at the University of Washington, is an “intellectual” who brings an extremely strong academic background to the job, Fouty said. She will help SKC transition through a period that the board hopes will bring more research opportunities to the school, he said.

Ross received her Ph.D. in sociology from the University of Oregon and has taught at several universities in California. Currently, she is working on two projects: one investigates violence on tribal college campuses, and another explores digital storytelling as a health intervention in Native communities. Ross is also a core member of the Center for Global Indigenous Health, located at UW, and is a founding member of the Boarding School Healing Project.

Ross, Carmen Taylor, Kevin Howlett and Vernon Finley were the four finalists. All but Ross currently work on the reservation.

She will succeed current president Joe McDonald.

McDonald, who helped found the school and is credited with much of its success, has been the school’s president for 32 years. He announced his retirement in the spring of 2009, allowing for a nearly 15-month long period to search for a successor.

McDonald’s work to secure grants and funding for the private college has helped it flourish, but funding will be a continuing challenge as this “evolution period” moves ahead, Fouty said.

“We’re not going to get away from our base - we are an institution that takes anyone at any education level,” Fouty said. “This is an opportunity to get into and allow the expansion of all scholarship.”

A press release to formally announce Ross’ selection will be announced in the future.