Help wanted: Looking for a strong leader with integrity, energy and a doctorate degree to inspire students and staff at Ohio University while representing the university.
And so the search for the 20th president of OU begins.
The presidential search and screening committee, chaired by OU trustee Robert Walter, met in December to map out the next steps of choosing a successor for current President Robert Glidden. Glidden, who announced his retirement in September, will leave at the end of June.
The 20-member committee - which includes faculty, staff, students, alumni, university trustees and Athens residents - compiled a list of professional and personal qualifications and characteristics desired in the next president.
With the help of national search firm A.T. Kearney, the job and its criteria have been advertised in several national magazines for higher education, said Shelly Weiss Storbeck, managing director and vice president for A.T. Kearney Education Practice.
A deadline to have applications submitted electronically by Feb. 5 has been established.
The first advertisement went in the Chronicle for Higher Education in December
so it would seem reasonable that adequate notice has been given for (applications and nominations) to be in by the submission date said Alan Geiger, assistant to the president and secretary to the board of trustees.
The ideal qualifications include a doctorate degree, a respected record in higher education, experience working with university constituents, an understanding of research universities and an administrative background. Integrity, leadership, communication skills, energy and the confidence to take criticism are some of the characteristics the committee highlighted.
The committee also created a list of the president's priorities and responsibilities. The next president will be expected to increase revenue, represent the university, attract top administrators, increase visibility across the country, enhance academic quality, promote diversity and work with the city of Athens.
As the committee established the criteria, A.T. Kearney began identifying potential candidates for future discussion, Geiger said. Our activities run on a parallel track. We're at the point where that will all come together.
Students also have been voicing their opinions. Student representatives to the committee - Graduate Student Senate President Michael Willits and student trustee Tara Stuckey - organized a forum with Student Senate last quarter to gather student opinions. The forum was designed to identify how students view OU and what a president should be to the students.
We wanted to move beyond what the university says it is and understand the kind of university the students see Willits said. He said they plan to present their observations to the search committee and to hold another forum soon.
The committee's next meeting will be on Feb. 17. A complete listing of the criteria requested for
the next president is available
at www.ohio.edu/presidentialsearch.
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Katie Primm
