Gov. William Donald Schaefer appointed Charles B. Saunders Jr. of Bethesda chairman of the Maryland Higher Education Commission yesterday.

Mr. Saunders is a former senior vice president of the American Council on Education in Washington. He has been a member of the commission since 1989.

He replaces Walter Sondheim Jr. of Baltimore, who was appointed chairman in March 1993 and resigned this month.

The 12-member commission oversees planning and coordination for Maryland's public colleges and regulates the state's private career schools.