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Iowa City Press Citizen
02/02/06
Faculty stands up to regents over search
AMES — A presidential search process led by the Iowa state Board of
Regents is “clearly an affront” to the University of Iowa campus, Faculty
Senate President Richard LeBlond said today.
It would also result in a president “strongly beholden” to constituencies
outside the university and could affect recruitment, he said.
“When you’re competing for the very best people, the very best people
have choice,” he said.
LeBlond’s comments came after he addressed the board about concerns
that campus involvement in the search to replace President David Skorton
will be lessened. The board will meet late this afternoon to hold initial
discussions on the process to find a replacement for Skorton, who has
announced that he will leave UI on June 30 to take over Cornell University
in New York.
“(A) committee with such limited faculty participation, especially without a
faculty chair, seriously reduces the expertise available to the search and
screen committee,” LeBlond told the board.
Concern has been growing on campus that the board will decrease faculty,
staff and student involvement in process compared with previous
searches.
In recent history, an outside search firm has worked alongside a
presidential search committee. For decades, that committee has been
chaired by a faculty member and had a faculty majority. Staff, students,
community members and alumni also are often on the committee, while
regents or regents staff sat as non-voting members.
But for the current search to replace University of Northern Iowa President
Robert Koob, board president Michael Gartner is serving as chairman and
three other regents are on the 13-member search committee.
Several regents have said in the past week that regents will likely be on
the UI search committee, too.
“It would be a profound change that would not sit well,” LeBlond said.
In his address to the board, LeBlond was flanked by UI Staff Council
President Michelle Wichman and Student Government President Mark
Kresowik, who were not given time to speak.
All three governing bodies support a campus-led search, and all have
passed resolutions saying so. On Wednesday, the Iowa State University
Faculty Senate passed a resolution of its own calling for faculty-led
searches.
Board President Michael Gartner was the only regent to respond to
LeBlond’s comments. He said he would be happy to hold a university wide
meeting before the board’s next meeting in March. Other regents could
also attend.
It is at the regent’s March meeting that the search committee’s composition
will be finalized.