Diane Heldt, Leader Wants Campus Interviews Left to Committee

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Leader wants campus interviews left to committee

Diane Heldt

The Gazette

January 9, 2006

[Note: This material is copyright by The Gazette, and is reproduced here as a matter of "fair use" for non-commercial, educational purposes only. Any other use may require the prior approval of The Gazette.]

The decision on whether to hold campus interviews with finalists for the University of Iowa presidency should be up to the search committee, the new search leader will tell the state Board of Regents on Thursday.

UI College of Dentistry Dean David Johnsen also will nominate five members of the committee, which he expects to total about 12.

Thursday’s meeting will be at 10 a.m. at the regents office in Urbandale. The docket was released Monday.

Johnsen, unanimously ap- pointed by the regents Dec. 18, is nominating:

Jonathan Carlson, a UI law professor who chaired the search for former UI President David Skorton.
Lee Anna Clark, psychology professor.
Leonard Hadley, retired chairman and chief executive officer of Maytag Corp. and a UI graduate.
Linda Maxson, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.
Paul Rothman, professor and head of the Department of Internal Medicine in the Carver College of Medicine.

That group will recommend the remaining members to the regents, and Johnsen will seek nominations for the spots to represent as many major constituencies as possible, he said Monday.

The often- controversial search for a successor to David Skorton, who left the UI in June for the Cornell University presidency, was in limbo until Johnsen’s appointment. The first search stalled Nov. 17, when the regents voted 6-2 to reject four candidates and disband the committee. That led to votes of no confidence by UI faculty, staff and student groups. The goal is to have a president named by July 1, Johnsen said. The committee will recommend four finalists, from which the regents will make the selection.

The issue of campus interviews will depend on the candidate pool and an active discussion in the UI community, Johnsen said.

‘‘I think most people, if possible, would like to have campus interviews. And if the very top candidates agree, then it’s a moot point,’’ he said. ‘‘But if your very top candidates decline a campus interview and there’s a gap to the next tier, then the committee is faced with the dilemma of breaking with a long tradition or dropping to the second tier."