President Mindy Benson

Mindy Benson serves as the President of Southern Utah University where she prioritizes the needs of faculty, staff, and students, mental health resources, and campus culture. Benson also focuses on strengthening community and University partnerships and led one of SUU’s most successful legislative sessions in recent history as interim president in 2021-2022.

Prior to her appointment as president, Benson served as Vice President of Alumni and Community Relations at SUU for eight years. In that role, Benson built a new division for community outreach and many of the public-facing entities of the University including Alumni Relations, Regional Services, the Utah Center for Rural Health, Business Resource Center and Small Business Development Center, the Southern Utah Museum of Art, and the Larry H. Miller Utah Summer Games. She has advanced through a variety of positions at SUU including Executive Director of Alumni Relations and Director of Student Life and Leadership. Along with her leadership responsibilities, Benson has also taught courses on campus for 14 years, in the departments of Communication, and Hotel, Resort, and Hospitality Management.

Benson has played a pivotal role in many community outreach efforts, including expanding workforce development, job creation, economic opportunities, increasing community and alumni engagement, and overseeing major campus and community special events. Her primary focus at SUU has been to strengthen ties with institutional stakeholders and create deep and lasting relationships with community members and leaders throughout the region and state. These efforts have led to expanded engagement of alumni, donors, and friends, as well as dramatically increased university resources through gifts and grants. 

In addition to her work at SUU, Benson is a professional event consultant and planner throughout the nation, with experience producing hundreds of high-level productions, including concerts, events, political conventions, gubernatorial and U.S. presidential inaugurations. 

Mindy is a Cedar City native, with ties to southern Utah and SUU that go back generations. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and a Master of Arts in Professional Communication from SUU.