On Tuesday, Mississippi’s Institutions of Higher Learning will hold a pair of listening sessions on the MUW campus as the process of replacing Nora Miller as the university president begins.

Any time there is change in leadership, the stakes are high. Each president will face challenges, some anticipated, others out of the blue.

That was certainly the case with Miller, The W’s first alumna president.

It could be said that Miller’s era began with internal challenges and ended with challenges from outside.

Those challenges represent a distinct new era as MUW faces existential threats from a legislature whose appetite for reducing the number of state-supported universities has been delayed, but not sated.

The 16th president will need to be a strong advocate for MUW’s independence and someone who can inspire the broader MUW family.

Continuing to focus on growing enrollment will be important in solidifying MUW’s status since enrollment will be a key factor if the legislature does reduce the number of state-supported schools.

The new president will also face a challenge that emerged late in Miller’s tenure: The future of Mississippi School for Mathematics and Science. A bid to move MSMS from The W campus to Mississippi State’s campus last year was turned away despite the Board of Education recommending the move.

That, too, is a challenge that may re-emerge. The viability of both MUW and MSMS are intrinsically linked. It will be the next MUW president’s job to strengthen the university’s bonds with MSMS in order to present a united front against future legislative challenges.

There is no doubt that MUW is under the type of scrutiny it hasn’t seen since transitioning to a coeducational institution, a move consummated by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling.

Every move, every blip on the radar, will be watched. That requires a forceful and dynamic leader in a new era for the university.

It is for that reason that MUW and its stakeholders should embrace every opportunity to contribute to the presidential search process.

The listening sessions will be held, Tuesday at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., in the Cochran Limbert Assembly Room inside Thad and Rose Cochran Hall on The W campus.

The Dispatch Editorial Board is made up of publisher Peter Imes, columnist Slim Smith, managing editor Zack Plair and senior newsroom staff.