Washington State University's Board of Regents named a new president Thursday who will take over in April as the school's first female president.

Utah State University President Elizabeth Cantwell, pictured here on the Pullman campus of Washington State University, was named the university's 12th president Thursday in Pullman. She is the first woman in the role since the university's creation in 1890. (Robert Hubner)

Robert J. Jones, currently the chancellor of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, has been chosen to become the 34th president of the University of Washington.

University of Washington has named Robert J. Jones as its next president. Jones will be the first Black president in the university’s 164-year history.