Presidential Search Update: Message to Campus Community

August 11, 2009

The below message was sent to the Georgia Southern University campus community on August 10, 2009 by Dr. Trey Denton, Chair of the Presidential Search and Screening Committee.

Greetings to all members of the Georgia Southern University campus community.

The Presidential Search and Screen Committee (PSSC) would like to announce that the search process is on track and continues to follow the timeline announced to campus earlier in the year and posted on the PSSC website (http://www.georgiasouthern.edu/presidentsearch/) which can be accessed via the GSU homepage. While we will continue to accept nominations and applications until a new President is named, our primary focus has shifted from the solicitation of nominations and applications to the screening of candidates. To date, we have received 79 nominations and 36 complete application packets. The Committee is pleased with the quality and quantity of candidates under consideration. Select candidates will be interviewed at an off-campus location during this stage. The Committee will then select five to six candidates to visit campus beginning the last week of August and extending into September.

The PSSC is fully aware that the campus eagerly awaits the opportunity to learn the identity and credentials of the candidates selected to visit campus. Yet, the PSSC is also aware that the announcement of this slate will trigger a strong reaction on the campus of each candidate invited to visit our campus.Because the visit schedule will extend over four weeks, the pressure placed on candidates scheduled to visit in the latter slots would be substantial if all the names were announced at once. Therefore, the PSSC has decided to follow the recommendation of Parker Executive Search and only announce each candidate’s name approximately two days prior to their respective visit.When each candidate’s name is announced, multiple copies of their vita will be placed in the University library along with samples of their scholarly productivity.

Each campus visit is carefully planned to expose candidates to all members of our University communitystudents, faculty, staff, alumni, and communityand to give each member an opportunity to formally evaluate each candidate. A typical candidate visit itinerary is attached to this communication. It is important that we remember that candidates are evaluating Georgia Southern as we are evaluating each candidate. The typical visit itinerary is designed to effectively demonstrate the qualities that make Georgia Southern such an attractive opportunityin particular our culture of kindness and collegiality, shared governance, and student engagement. Along the way, candidates will tour our beautiful campus and will be exposed to the places, facilities, and outreach centers that facilitate interaction and exploration.

Please note that there is an Open Forum that all may attend. This Open Forum will be held in the afternoon of the second day of the typical visit, from 4-5:30pm, in the Performing Arts Center. This event is open to students, faculty, staff, alumni, the community, and the press (Press coverage will be limited. No interviews. Video will be restricted to the first five minutes of the formal presentation.). Each candidate will be expected to make a 10-15 minute presentation followed by an extended opportunity for questions and answers. Questions will be drawn from a set derived from the meetings held with all campus constituent groups last spring, from questions submitted to the PSSC prior to the campus visits, and from the floor during the Open Forum. Each question submitted from the floor will be added to the set used for the candidates to follow. In this manner, we can provide a consistency that allows better comparison of candidate performance yet still allows flexibility in relation to the content of specific candidate responses.

Students should note that a set of campus student leaders will be having lunch with each candidate on the second day of each visit. Faculty should note that there is a special one-hour Faculty Q & A on the third day of each visit from 8-9 a.m. (all but one of these opportunities will be held in the Auditorium of the Nessmith-Lane Building). This faculty-only opportunity will be moderated by the Executive Committee of the Faculty Senate. More details will be forthcoming from the Faculty Senate concerning the format of this session.Staff should note that each candidate will be having breakfast with the Staff Council on the third day of each visit. Alumni and community members should note that there is a special ‘invitation-only” reception on the evening of the second day of each visit, in which 40-50 alumni and community leaders will have the opportunity to interact with each candidate in a social setting in the new Eugene M. Bishop Alumni Center.

At each event, evaluation sheets will be available so that participants will have the opportunity to formally evaluate each candidate. Evaluation sheets will also be available online via the PSSC website. It is important to remember that the charge of the PSSC is to produce 3-5 acceptable, unranked candidates, and forward these names to the Chancellor and the Special Regents’ Committee selected by the Board of Regents. The PSSC expects to forward the finalists’ names by mid-October.

Please reserve the following dates and times and plan to participate in this very important process. Dates are subject to change as deemed necessary by the PSSC.

Open Forums (4-5:30pm in the Performing Arts Center)

UPDATED: 8-25-2009

Thurs Sept 10

Thurs Sept 17

Mon Sept 21

Thurs Sept 24

Mon Sept 28

Thurs Oct 1

Presidential Search Campus Visit Itinerary and Interview Schedule

Day 1 (Sunday or Wednesday)

TBD – Arrive Mid-day

TBD Campus and Community Tour

7:00 p.m. Dinner with Members of Search Committee

Day 2 (Monday or Thursday)

7:00-8:00 Breakfast with President Bruce Grube

8:15-8:55 – Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Gary Means

9:00-9:40 VP University for Advancement William Griffis

9:45-10:25 VP for Business and Finance Ron Core

10:30-11:10 VP for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management Teresa Thompson

11:15-11:55 VP for Information Technology and Chief Information Officer Steve Burrell

12:00-12:25 Executive Associate to the President Marilyn Bruce

12:30-1:45 Lunch with Student Leaders

2:00-3:00 Deans’ Council

3:00-3:45 Rest and Preparation for Forum

4:00-5:30 Open Forum (Performing Arts Center) (Open to students, faculty, staff, alumni, community, press)

6:00-7:30 Community Reception (Invitation-only)

Day 3- (Tuesday or Friday)

6:45 Depart for Campus

7:00-7:45- Breakfast with Staff Council

8:00-9:00- Faculty Forum/Q & A (Nessmith-Lane Auditorium/faculty only)

9:00-10:00- Presidential Search and Screen Committee

10:00 Candidate Departure for Hotel

TBD Candidate Departure for Airport