by Katy Knapp
Daily Lobo
For David Harris, taking on the job as acting president of UNM is a lot of extra work with no extra pay.
But more work doesn't bother him.
"I'm not worried about hard work," Harris said. "That's not a problem. I attack every job through good organization."
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UNM Board of Regents President Jamie Koch said Harris will continue to receive his salary of $211,633, but the regents have not discussed paying him more.
"That's the least of our worries right now," Koch said.
Harris, 61, came to UNM in 2004 as executive vice president of business and finance. He was chosen as acting president of the University on Wednesday after Louis Caldera resigned.
Susan Carkeek, associate vice president for human resources, has been helping ease Harris' work load - taking over day-to-day work while he is in Santa Fe lobbying in the legislative session, Harris said.
He was on campus Monday meeting with Caldera's staff to get a better idea of what the president's job requires. He said his jobs will be a lot easier with the help of Caldera's staff and Carkeek.
"We're going to have to figure out how to master work flows in that office, as an addition to my own office," he said.
UNM administrators have been at the capitol lobbying for University funding, including millions of dollars for the Health Sciences Center, money toward a new building for the College of Education, and lowering the tuition credit to 2.5 percent.
The University needed someone with financial expertise during the legislative session, Koch said, and selecting Harris as acting president was not done on a whim.
Another person could have been selected as acting president if UNM wasn't in the process of requesting funding from the state, Koch said.
"All of this means millions of dollars for the University," Koch said. "So we need someone who speaks best to get us that money. That is what Harris brings to us - financial reward for the University."
As a matter of fact, Koch said, this year could prove to be UNM's most successful at the Roundhouse.
Harris agreed and said the success is a coordinated effort among the different UNM departments seeking money. Executives and administrators have all had the opportunity to voice their concerns to the Legislature, he said.
"Hopefully, we are going to do real well," Harris said.
Names have been thrown around as to who will be chosen as interim president, which Koch said will be determined before the University's Budget Summit in April.
"I don't know one regent who's talked about any one person," he said. "There's a heck of a list of anyone who could be interim president."
After an interim is chosen, the regents will determine what qualities the next president should have, Koch said.
"We need to step back and talk to a lot of people at the University and see what is the ideal - what this person should look like," he said.
He said the regents want to hear what the UNM community wants in the next president before hiring a search committee, which he predicts will happen this summer.
In his opinion, Koch said, the new president should have a strong academic background and good fundraising skills, Koch said, but realizes a strong leader needs to have other characteristics.
"I have an open mind. I want to listen to what people say - maybe my opinion is not right," he said. "We need someone to relate well to students and raise money, but really I don't know. If I did know, I'd be a genius."
There have been three UNM presidents since 1998, which averages out to 2.6 years per term.
Koch said he did not know the reason for the high turnover of presidents, but said besides getting community input, the search and interview process will be more vigorous than previous years. He said the search will not begin until the regents have a strong idea of what kind of person they are looking for.
"We haven't defined what we are really looking for. We are not faulting anybody," he said. "We hire a president, they come, and they aren't what the University wanted. Who made the mistake?"
Koch said the split between Caldera and the Board of Regents was amicable.
"It is sad when you make changes," he said. "But no individual is bigger than the University, period. Now we need to move forward in the best way possible."
