Game for new gig at UMass
Crosby in the running for chancellor
State Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby is considering leaving one troubled institution for another — and potentially doubling his alreadysix-figure salary — by taking over as chancellor of UMass Boston.
Crosby said he’s agreed to be considered in the University of Massachusetts Boston’s global search for a new chancellor to run the school of 17,000, the secondlargest in the state system. In a statement, Crosby said he was “fully focused” on his current job but left the door open for a move.
“I am very flattered to be considered a possible candidate for the position of Chancellor of UMass Boston. It is a remarkable and important institution,” Crosby said in a statement. “However, for now I am fully focused on my job as Chair of the Gaming Commission, which I have found to be endlessly challenging and fascinating.”
Crosby was founding dean of UMass Boston’s McCormack Graduate School of Policy and Global Studies, but has mostly worked in the private sector — founding CCI/Crosby Publishing — and in various appointed positions at the State House, serving under Republican and Democratic governors. Former Gov. Deval Patrick appointed Crosby chair of the Gaming Commission in 2011, which carries a paycheck of $161,522 — less than half of previous Chancellor Keith Motley’s salary of $355,000.
Both the Gaming Commission and UMass Boston have come under fire recently, as the commission deals with the fallout of sexual harassment claims against Steve Wynn — including whether the Wynn casino should keep its gambling license — and questions about the commission’s initial suitability investigation of the casino magnate.
And Motley was forced out as chancellor last year after the school faced a $30 million deficit. The college recently laid off several dozen staffers.
Marlene Kim, president of UMass Boston’s faculty and staff union, said she could not comment on Crosby specifically but said the school’s next leader needs to recognize the university’s unique circumstances.
“What the campus needs is someone who understands the urban mission of our university and that we serve firstgeneration college students and are a majority-minority institution” Kim said. “We need someone who can get us the funding that we need to serve the students instead of facing cutbacks year after year.”