The state Board of Regents decided Tuesday to skip a national hunt and voted to promote Utah State University Provost Stan Albrecht to the top job at the state's No. 2 research university.

That's what the Faculty Senate had been lobbying for at the Logan school.

"You can stop calling me now," Regents Chairman Nolan Karras jokingly told faculty members and students Tuesday. "He's the right man at the right time for Utah State University."

After the regents' unanimous vote naming him USU's 15th president, Albrecht - joined by his wife, Joyce, an associate vice president at the school - approached the front of the standing-room only crowd at the Taggart Student Center auditorium to a chorus of applause.

"I am honored by the trust you have placed in me," he said. "I accept this assignment with humility and a clear understanding of the expectations, challenges and opportunities ahead."

Albrecht, 61, will step into his new job Feb. 1, replacing Kermit Hall, who is leaving to head the State University of New York in Albany.

Lex Essig, USU's student body president, welcomed Albrecht's appointment.

"A search would have been simply unnecessary," Essig said. "Albrecht has the ability to take the university to the next level."

And the last thing the regents needed was an "unnecessary" search. They already are looking for permanent presidents for Salt Lake Community College, Dixie State College and the Utah College of Applied Technology.

Last year, they completed a monthslong national search for a president to lead Utah's top research school. They settled on Michael Young - The George Washington University law school dean who had academic ties to Brigham Young University and ancestral ties to Utah pioneer leader Brigham Young - to oversee the University of Utah.

Regents and faculty members were quick to note that Albrecht went through the lengthy search process four years ago when he finished second to Hall in the presidency race. Later, Hall named Albrecht provost, his second in command.

Regent Meghan Holbrook says she doesn't believe the decision to forgo a national search will set a precedent for other schools in line to get new presidents.

"We will see what happens," Holbrook said. "But in this case, it was clearly Stan Albrecht."

Gayle McKeachnie, chairman of USU's board of trustees, "confessed" his board voted six months ago to recommend Albrecht to replace Hall, who, at the time, was one of two finalists for the top job at the University of Tennessee.

"If President Hall were to leave, we told him [Albrecht] we wanted him to continue the job," McKeachnie said.

Hall was out of town Tuesday, but issued a statement supporting the regents' choice.

"Stan fully understands the ambitions, the resources and the people - both inside and outside the institution - and, as a result, he will provide superb leadership."

It's vital to continue the momentum and progress at USU - higher student retention, increased fund raising, better academic performance - and that's why it's important to have an experienced person at the helm, Karras said. "It is reassuring to know that the person we were looking for is already providing leadership at Utah State."

Albrecht, a sociologist, earned his doctoral and master's degrees from Washington State University after getting a bachelor's from Brigham Young University. Besides his stint as USU provost, Albrecht was dean of the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at the Logan school. He also has been an administrator and professor at the University of Florida and BYU.

As USU president, Albrecht will earn a $232,200 salary along with insurance, medical and other benefits. He also gets use of the president's residence and a car.

sykes@sltrib.com

New boss' priorities

* Put students and academic quality first.

* Work for appropriate compensation for faculty and staff.

* Ensure access to qualified students regardless of income.

* Create shared governance with faculty, students and various boards.

* Welcome accountability.

* Bring athletic success in the classroom and on the playing field.

* Accelerate fund raising.

* Build on the statewide economic partnership with the University of Utah