by Katy Knapp
Daily Lobo
In lieu of an interim president, UNM will have three leaders for next year.
The Board of Regents announced on Tuesday that acting President David Harris, Provost Reed Dasenbrock, and Paul Roth, associate vice president for UNM Health Sciences, will lead the University until a permanent president is named in 2007.
Regents President Jamie Koch said this was done to make sure the University has qualified people in charge of all facets of UNM - academics, finances and health sciences.
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"It's a management leadership team with each one serving as acting president of the items they are in control of," Koch said.
Harris said he, Roth and Dasenbrock presented the idea to the regents. He said choosing an interim president would not add anything to the University's management.
"What we thought is, if we added a fourth person to the process, it would not really add a great deal of value," Harris said. "It would just be an added experience that may be unnecessary, given the fact that we are going to have a permanent president next year. That's where the focus should lie, really."
Koch said a president should be hired by April 10, 2007. In the meantime, a 16-member search committee, headed by regent Raymond Sanchez and including regents Sandra Begay-Campbell and Mel Eaves, will be formed by August.
Harris will be receiving a salary increase from $211,000 to $270,000, which includes a $9,000 traveling allowance, Koch said. Roth and Dasenbrock will not receive pay increases.
On top of acting president duties, Harris will also be the associate vice president of finance and administration.
Harris, who has a long history of working with finances in the state and at UNM, will be in charge of all financial issues and decisions.
Dasenbrock will control the academic side of the University. Koch said Dasenbrock will have the final word on all matters relating to academics.
"So he is really the acting president of academics because he won't have to answer to the president," he said.
He said Dasenbrock was chosen to take care of academics because the faculty rated him highly during the provost selection process.
"He is very much supported by the academics on campus," Koch said.
Harris agreed.
"I think the real idea is they wanted to make sure we are able to install academic professionals in our academic activity," Harris said.
Koch said if there is a disagreement among the three members of the team, Harris will have the tie-breaking decision.
"He would have to take sides with one of them," he said.
Harris said he doesn't foresee any problems in camaraderie with the team.
"I think that's why the regents chose us to make up the team, because of the fact that we work so well together," he said. "None of us are looking to have a superior position over the other."
Harris' contract with the University expires Dec. 31, but he agreed to extend that to June 30, 2007, he said.
"But you can't really ever say anything definitively about what you're going to do, because things always seem to take a turn," he said. "I'm very comfortable with where I'm at right now."
Dasenbrock and Roth could not be reached for comment Wednesday.
