Another top job at USM has hit the ‘Help Wanted’ section of academic journals around the country.
A nationwide search is now on to fill the office of University Provost, following a decision by president Selma Botman this summer to hire from without. While the new appointment won’t involve any explicit terminations or resignations, as the school doesn’t currently have a permanent provost, it does mark a departure – neither of the two men who have occupied the spot since the mid-1990s were offered it by the new administration.
It was illness that forced out Mark Lapping in 2000, following a six year tenure, and he was immediately replaced by Joseph Wood of the geography department. Wood was then appointed interim President in 2007, as a nationwide search to fill that position went underway. Lapping, recovered from his health crisis, volunteered to step in and act as interim provost during a tumultuous period for the University, one that saw high-profile financial oversight, budget cuts, program reviews, and finally the selection of a new President.
But Lapping’s interim tenure has not yet come to a close.
Wood was, in his words, “available and expecting” to return to the provost slot for the 2008-09 academic year, and many others anticipated the same. When word got out that the new administration would instead be looking outside the University, Wood received enough inquiries from colleagues to issue a 300-word email to the entire faculty.
In it, he offered thanks for widespread interest in his future, and confirmed that he would not be leaving the school beyond a planned sabbatical, part of his contract as interim President.
“After exploring a few possibilities this year,” he wrote, “[my wife] and I have determined we wanted to remain at USM, where we have good friends, good colleagues, and a supportive community.”
Wood did not wish to elaborate much on that letter with the Free Press, noting via email that it is fairly common for incoming presidents to dismiss the sitting provost and hire their own leadership team.
“Thats what happened,” he confirmed.
Botman says that she has repeatedly thanked Wood for the way he and other senior staff members addressed the school’s financial crises over the last year. Lapping, for his part, remains good friends with Wood and professes a strong dialogue with the new President.
“We are talking about grown-ups here, and two very good professionals” says Lapping, who will also stay on in his role as professor at USM’s Muskie School for Public Service.
The decision now behind them, the focus has shifted to the task of selecting the next permanent provost. In addition to wanting to hire a fresh face to the office, Botman has brought in an outside perspective to the search itself – Dr. Clara Lovette, President Emeriti at Northern Arizona University.
According to Botman, Lovette comes out of retirement to help with about one of these searches per year, purely out of “a commitment to the profession” (and with only “modest compensation.”) According to others involved, Lovette’s role in the process is limited to the earliest stages, and mostly involves building and encouraging a network of prospective candidates. From there, a local fixture will be taking the reigns.
David Nutty, Director of USM Libraries, has been tapped to head the committee that will present president Botman with the final list of two or three qualified candidates. He is quick to point out that the final decision rests with her, and that it is the job of a committee to “vet” the top applicants – namely, to compare histories and contact references. The ordeal is nothing new to Nutty, who estimates that he’s been on about a hundred search committees throughout his career. In the days ahead, he will finish fleshing out the list of faculty, staff and others who will comprise this one.
While tight-lipped about the exact composition of the panel – the big announcement comes in about a week or so – Nutty does point out that the group will include a representative from the student body.
“That is indicative of how we’re trying to broadly represent the community,” he said.
But in the end, the new provost will likely be encountering that community for the first time, and that is precisely what the new president is looking for.
“It is my goal to advance USM,” she says. “I think that having someone come in fresh and look anew at the University can be very helpful at this moment in time.”