David McRaney  |  Journalist

Faculty Senate looks to the future

Mark Goodman, president of Mississippi State University's Faculty Senate, appeared before the USM Faculty at their first meeting of the semester and brought with him news of his university's search for a new president, a search which may be much different than in years past.

Faculty were keen to hear Goodman's comments because USM's own search for a new president will likely begin this fall and may follow the same model as MSU's search.

Goodman said instead of a secretive, back-door process as before, the new method will involve witnesses throughout the course of the selection to ensure the best candidate will become president.

At MSU, a 24-person Presidential Search Advisory Committee will reduce a pool of candidates to five finalists who will be submitted to the College Board for final selection.

If a similar process takes place at USM it would mean a far less clandestine operation than the search leading to Shelby F. Thames becoming president of the university in 2002.

The Faculty Senate has repeatedly expressed dismay over being left out of that election process.

The new move by the Mississippi Institutions of Higher Learning has been accepted by USM faculty with some apprehension. A letter to the IHL commending the organization for providing inclusion while expressing reservations is planned.

Goodman said he agreed candidate's names should be kept confidential in the initial stages of the search to protect whatever positions they may currently hold, but believes someone other than just the College Board should scrutinize finalists.

He added fear of reprisal from current employers would significantly reduce the pool of applicants, yet the adherence to secrecy is likely to be debated up until the final decision is made.

"Taxpayers won't know who will be running a public institution till the last minute," said Bob Press, assistant professor of political science at USM.

Goodman expressed optimism about the inclusion of an advisory board populated by faculty members saying it was the first step in ending the conflict between the IHL and faculty, but USM faculty members remained cynical.

USM professor of anthropology Amy Young may have summed up the sentiment of the room when she told Goodman, "I have no confidence in this. We made our voice heard from the beginning last time, and they didn't listen."

Originally published in The Student Printz on January 31, 2006