Potential Regents from the stateâÄôs first, fourth, sixth, and seventh congressional districts now have until Thursday to put their names in the hat for selection to the University of Minnesota Board of Regents. The Regent Candidate Advisory Council extended the application deadline for the second time this fall, from Dec. 1 to Dec. 4, because of a lack of applicants. The first extension, announced near the end of October, changed the deadline from Nov. 10 to Dec. 1. As the extended deadline drew near last week, the council sent letters to previous yearsâÄô applicants, inviting them to re-apply. Council Chair David Fisher, said the response was good and the deadline was extended from Monday to Thursday so applications wouldnâÄôt have to be rushed over the holiday weekend. He said itâÄôs difficult for the 24 member Regent Candidate Advisory Council to get the word out and recruit regent candidates because it has no budget, and must rely on newspapers and word-of-mouth to reach potential applicants. After applications are in, the council will screen the candidates and recommend between two and four candidates from each of the four congressional districts to the state Legislature, who will then select the new regents. The UniversityâÄôs 12 regents are elected for six-year terms, with four positions opening every two years. One regent represents each of MinnesotaâÄôs eight congressional districts, and four come from the state at large. One of the at-large representatives must be a student at the University of Minnesota when they are elected. Unlike two years ago, when there were virtually no applicants at the end of the regular application period, at least a couple of people have applied from each district, Fisher said. Three current Regents running again are: the RegentsâÄô current chair, Patricia Simmons from the first district, Vice Chair Clyde Allen from the seventh district, and John Frobenius from the sixth. Fisher said David Metzen, the fourth districtâÄôs regent, is nearing the end of his second term and is not reapplying. Regents are not paid, and usually spend about 40 hours per month on business. Fisher said applicants are usually successful community leaders with a love for the University. Vice Chair Clyde Allen said he is interested in running again because the University is an exciting place where people are doing all kinds of great things to help the world. About the time Allen retired after 20 years as the vice president for business affairs at Concordia College in Moorhead, Minn., he was approached and asked if he would be interested in becoming a regent. He has been on the board for the last six years.