We welcome Mike Middleton as the interim president of Lincoln University.
Middleton, who, until recently, served as interim president of the University of Missouri, should be a good fit for LU while it works to get a permanent president.
After four years at Lincoln, LU President Kevin Rome announced in March that he will become president of Fisk University in Nashville, Tennessee, starting July 1.
Middleton took over as interim head of the four-campus University of Missouri system in November 2015 after Tim Wolfe abruptly resigned amid student-led protests on the Columbia campus, over the administration's handling of racial complaints.
Middleton was the third black graduate of the University of Missouri School of Law in 1971. The attorney worked in various federal positions before returning to MU's Law School as a teacher in 1985. He's gained a reputation as a respected lawyer and academic.
Middleton has blamed MU's highly public incidents of racial strife on a lack of communication and complacency by administrators.
But, a year ago, he told the Columbia Daily Tribune administrators had reason to believe that race relations were good at Mizzou. He pointed to an Inside Higher Education survey that found 84 percent of college presidents surveyed think race relations on their campuses are good or excellent, the paper reported.
Students these days, he said, are less likely to endure disrespect than students in past generations.
"The times have simply changed," Middleton told the Columbia Daily Tribune. "This generation is much less willing to put up with the micro-aggressions, the indignities that people of color experience in this world, than we were in the '60s."
Middleton's temporary jump to LU after a brief retirement doesn't mean he'll escape rough waters. Lincoln has its own troubles, which are exacerbated by recent budget woes. The state is reducing LU's funding for the 2017-18 year by $3.8 million, and the Rome administration is planning to cut 48 positions and reduce all remaining employees' pay by a half-percent.
Middleton told a news conference Thursday he'll review the proposed changes - but made no promises to change the Rome proposal.
The Faculty Senate, understandably, is upset.
Stephanie Clark, the incoming chair of LU's Faculty Senate, said: "What is even more disappointing (than the state withholding) is that the university's administration is choosing to balance the budget on the backs of the most underpaid faculty and staff in the state and the nation."
She said the Faculty Senate never had a "seat at the table" when the decision was being made, "despite the lip service to shared governance."
Middleton said he'll have an "open door" policy and plans to meet with many different people and groups about Lincoln and its future.
Middleton seems like a logical choice to head an HBCU (Historically Black Colleges and Universities) such as LU. We hope he can calm the waters during his brief time at the helm.