Forth Hays State University announces a successor to retiring president Dr. Edward Hammond.

The school Friday morning introduced Dr. Mirta Martin as the ninth president of Fort Hays State University. In a special meeting at the school, the Kansas Board of Regents voted to approve the appointment and officially introduced the new president.

Mirta M. Martin, Ph.D., has served as dean of the Reginald F. Lewis School of Business at Virginia State University since 2009. She has also held various higher education leadership positions throughout her career such as special assistant to the chancellor, executive vice president and associate dean, among other positions. Dr. Martin received her Ph.D. from Virginia Commonwealth University, a Master of Business Administration from the University of Richmond, Richmond, Va., and a Bachelor of Science from Duke University.

Martin will take over from Dr. Edward Hammond, who announced last year that he would retire at the end of a June, a month after he turns 70 years old. He has led Fort Hays State since 1987 and is the longest-serving current president or chancellor in the state university system.

Mirta Martin will begin her presidency on July 1.