Mark Kennedy’s resignation is the right thing»

University of Colorado President Mark Kennedy is doing the right thing by stepping down.

Kennedy lost, or rather he never had, the confidence of the faculty and students on four campuses in Boulder, Denver, Aurora and Colorado Springs. Another leader in another time might have been capable of overcoming the politically tainted hiring process that gave the former Republican congressman a lucrative contract to run the CU system, however, Kennedy made missteps along the way and failed to wow those observing his progress.

Kennedy faced the growing opposition to his tenure with grace and he now has publicly committed to departing, sparing the regents a likely fraught review process. In some regards, Kennedy is selflessly stepping aside at the right moment.

But history will only repeat itself if this state’s elected regents don’t take stock of what went wrong last time and commit to a more open and transparent hiring process. Kennedy’s political work was only part of the problem. The unshakable feeling that more qualified candidates had been passed over for the job was heightened by the secrecy around the finalists and was confirmed when a list of applicants and finalists was leaked to the media.

This time around, the regents should openly disclose finalists. Students and faculty will trust the process more if they do.

We simply don’t buy the premise that the largest public university system in Colorado, offering top-pay and residence in Boulder, would struggle to attract top-tier candidates out of a fear their names would become public. Finalists should wear it as a feather in their cap that they were considered for such a prestigious job when talking to current employers about their application or even when talking to future employers.

The regents should commit to an open and transparent process whether or not the ill-advised House Bill 1051 becomes law allowing public entities to not disclose the names of finalists for chief executive officer positions. Gov. Jared Polis should veto

House Bill 1051 and keep the requirement currently in law that a state or local public body “shall make public the list of all finalists under consideration.”

The public has limited say in who the nine elected regents will select to replace Kennedy — the timeline of his departure is still unclear. But the only way the public can hold their elected officials accountable for this critical decision is if they are provided with information about who the final candidates were and what played into the decision-making process.

Denver Public Schools admirably released the names of three finalists for their superintendent position last week, showing what real leadership and transparency look like in this state.

Kennedy was put in a position where he was unlikely to succeed.

The next president of CU deserves a better start and the people of Colorado deserve a more transparent and open search process.

Members of The Denver Post’s editorial board are Megan Schrader, editor of the editorial pages; Lee Ann Colacioppo, editor; Justin Mock, CFO; Bill Reynolds, general manager/ senior vp circulation and production; Bob Kinney, vice president of information technology; and TJ Hutchinson, systems editor.