The 21-member committee created to find the University’s next chancellor is holding four forums on Nov. 7-8 to solicit feedback from students, faculty, staff and community members.
The search committee is taking the right step by holding these forums, and the University community should participate in them.
This commitment to transparency should be preserved throughout the search process.
A small search committee runs the risk of being limited by the experience and incentives of its membership. But the committee can avoid this concern by using the input gathered to shape and inform its decisions every step of the way.
The next chancellor will face serious challenges — navigating the difficult relationship between athletics and academics, keeping affordability a priority in a shifting political climate and balancing needs for efficiency and academic quality.
Determining what kind of a chancellor the University needs requires understanding the hopes and concerns of all members of the University community.
The forums will also give students, faculty and staff, whose voices might otherwise go unheard, a chance to give input in the selection process.
Administrators are taking a commendable step in prioritizing openness in the chancellor selection process by hosting these forums.
But this effort will be wasted if the University community doesn’t make use of this opportunity.
