MADISON, Wis. -- Monday kicked off a week of meet-and-greet opportunities for the public to talk with the four finalists vying to become the next University of Wisconsin-Madison chancellor.

Dr. Gary Sandefur, the dean of the UW's College of Letters and Science, took questions Monday from the public and faculty at Memorial Union on campus.

Sandefur is no stranger to campus. In fact, he's worn a number of hats since arriving on campus in 1984, including professor of sociology.

Yet if Sandefur were to become the chancellor, he could have the challenge of dealing with dwindling funding from the state.

“I think the next chancellor will spend a lot of time on fundraising [and] talking with private donors. That is something I would work on very quickly," he said.

Sandefur has been the dean of the College of Letters and Science since 2004.

The others candidates are Dr. Biddy Martin, the provost of Cornell University in New York; Dr. Timothy Mulcahy, vice president for research at the University of Minnesota; and Dr. Rebecca Blank, the former dean at the Gerald Ford School of Public Policy at the University of Michigan.

A public reception will also be held at the Memorial Union's main lounge for each of the remaining finalists, running from Monday through Thursday. The sessions will be held from 1:30 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Officials said that feedback on the candidates may be sent to chancellorsearch@bascom.wisc.edu by Monday, May 19 at 4 p.m.

University of Wisconsin System President Kevin Reilly announced the names of four finalists for the position last Wednesday.

The Board of Regents Search Committee is expected to announce its decision on who should be the next chancellor at the board's June 6 meeting.

Current Chancellor John Wiley is leaving in September after seven years in the job.