by Caleb Fort
Daily Lobo
Faculty members voted Tuesday to recommend Meredith Hay and Robert McGrath to the regents for UNM's presidency.
About 70 faculty members voted, said professor Richard Wood, who ran the meeting.
Hay was the only candidate who received unanimous approval.
Get content from The Daily Lobo delivered to your inbox
"I think the faculty felt like she brought a lot of skills as an administrator and a lot of skills from an academic standpoint," Wood said.
Although Hay got more votes than McGrath, they are recommended equally in the resolution to the Board of Regents.
The regents are scheduled to announce the president Saturday, the earliest day allowed under state law.
The faculty did not recommend candidates Daniel L¢pez, David Schmidly and Herman Lujan.
Wood said many faculty didn't vote for Schmidly because of a dismissed lawsuit that claimed he referred to a female employee with a derogatory term.
"The faculty was quite divided regarding Schmidly," he said. "I think it certainly has to do with those accusations."
Schmidly denied the allegation during his campus visit Tuesday.
"You have no idea how those accusations pain me," he said.
Sharon Warner, a professor of English and director of creative writing,
said she voted against Schmidly for reasons other than the lawsuit.
"That wasn't the deciding factor for me," she said. "There are a lot of other concerns that I have."
Warner is concerned that Schmidly has served at Texas A&M, Texas Tech and Oklahoma State University, she said.
"Those are three schools that are close to each other and sort of at the same level, so I don't know why he kept moving," she said. "That's a very strange trajectory. I'm worried that he would come here and then leave for New Mexico State (University)."
David Groth, chairman of Staff Council, said staff members will not endorse any candidates.
"I think there was a great pool of finalists to begin with," he said. "I think the staff would be happy with any of the candidates."
Students will not endorse candidates because of low turnout at the meetings, ASUNM President Brittany Jaeger said.
Wood said the resolution is a recommendation, not a mandate.
"We respect the regents' decision-making role here," he said. "The faculty are giving their counsel to the regents, and hopefully, the regents will listen. But I hope the faculty will come together under whoever the regents choose."
Check DailyLobo.com Saturday evening for a story on who the
regents select as UNM's president.
