by Christopher Sanchez
Daily Lobo
UNM Regents President Jamie Koch said he hopes to select the next University president by April 10, 2007.
"I found if you put a timetable on something, you'll accomplish it," he said.
Koch announced this at a regents meeting Monday.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
He appointed three regents to the UNM presidential search committee. Regent Raymond Sanchez will serve as the chairman of the committee, and regents Sandra Begay-Campbell and Mel Eaves will also serve on the committee.
The rest of the committee members will be named by August, Koch said.
The search committee will reflect the University's diverse population, he said.
"The key of the process to make it work is to reflect the balance of the community," Koch said. The committee members should be majority-minority, including females, he said.
John Geissman, professor of Earth and Planetary Sciences, presented the regents with a list of recommendations for the hiring process of the next president.
The list was compiled at an open meeting held for UNM faculty on March 27. About 125 faculty members were present, Geissman said.
Geissman said faculty members' voices were overlooked during the search for the last president in 2003.
"Don't forget that we work here, and we interact with students, and we see how the place operates," he said.
The most critical recommendation is having the search committee remain active after finalists are chosen, he said.
In the last search, the committee was disbanded after the top five finalists were recommended to the regents, he said. He sees nothing wrong with the search committee making a final recommendation to the regents, he said.
The list of recommendations was a result of former President Louis Caldera's resignation in January, Geissman said.
When Caldera was a candidate, faculty members thought he wasn't qualified for the position, he said.
"We ranked him at the bottom of the list," he said. "Of all the candidates interviewed, he was at the bottom."
Among some things, faculty at the meeting on March 23 voted against using a professional search firm in the hiring process of the president.
Search firms cost money, Geissman said, and faculty would like reliance on such firms minimized.
Faculty also made recommendations on the minimum requirements a candidate must have to be considered for the position, including having tenure.
"Earning tenure speaks volumes," he said. "This individual by implication has taught, and has probably taught a lot."
Geissman said by having tenure, the candidate has more than likely conducted independent research and has full appreciation of higher education.
Geissman said he could only hope the regents take the recommendations seriously.
"There is no question the regents are loyal to UNM. There is no doubt about it; it's obvious. But I genuinely hope we have common consensus, and we do things right this time," he said.
ASUNM President Brittany Jaeger said she has been encouraging students to provide recommendations for the next UNM president.
Jaeger said most recommendations ask for the next president to be more involved with students by attending student events.
She said ASUNM senators have been asked to submit recommendations, and the Greek community petitioned what they would like to see in the next president.
Student recommendations will be submitted to the search committee, but in the meantime she will be accepting submissions, she said.
- Katy Knapp contributed to this story.
