Target set for hiring president
University of Colorado’s Board of Regents gave more details on the search for the system’s next president at a forum on the Boulder campus Tuesday, including that the board aims to vote on hiring a new president in March.
The open forum to hear campus feedback on the next president included Democratic Regents Callie Rennison, Lesley Smith, Jack Kroll and Ilana Spiegel. Approximately 20 people attended in person, primarily university and system employees, and there were 53 participants online, according to CU.
Smith, who is chairing the search committee, said the board will soon announce the name of the search firm hired to help find the next president. The Board of Regents will announce the 17member search committee during a Nov. 18 meeting, and the search committee will meet for the first time in mid-december to draw up a job description, Smith said.
The search committee will start the application and recruitment process in January, and the Board of Regents is seeking to vote on a new president in March.
The Board of Regents has not yet decided whether to announce a sole finalist or multiple finalists, Smith said.
The forum turned into more of a question-and-answer session than a listening session, with regents fielding questions about transparency, partisanship and what qualities they want in the next president.
“We’re actually asking that of you,” Smith said. “We want to hear from you what qualities you want to see in our next president.”
Several participants asked if the board would prioritize a president who would advocate for CU and secure more funding for higher education.
Funding is one part of the president’s job, Kroll said.
“As we assess our candidates we will absolutely look for an individual who will come in and champion the cause of higher education in the state, not just for the University of Colorado system but for the higher education system in the state at large,” he said.
Another participant asked how the board would ensure that the search and hiring process wasn’t partisan.
“I don’t use a partisan lens when I make my decisions as regent and as chair, I would hope that we don’t get into partisan politics,” Smith said. “What I would like to see is the absolute best
person we can get for the university system who will bring the University of Colorado to a higher level nationally and within our state.”
Smith also answered a question on what it looks like on the national stage for public universities looking to hire presidents right now, noting there are roughly 12 institutions searching for new leaders.
“It’s going to be competitive, obviously, because of that,” she said. “Talking to people, they say the University of Colorado is very strong because of its research and location — even though (state) funding is poor, it’s got such a high level of expertise in research and medicine and so forth, I’m hoping it’s going to be very attractive.”
Faculty member Melinda Piket-may, who attended the forum in person, said she was as curious about the types of questions asked as much as the answers from the regents.
“I want to see (a president) who desperately cares about open, honest and truthful discourse about anything,” Piket-may said. “I teach engineering but also recognize that everything is in a social context. It doesn’t matter what you’re discussing; you’re spending time on those social questions, and we need a president who is going to support that.”