1/8/2012: Back in November, Bob Berdahl wrote in the RG:
If you want to be president of the University of Oregon, be prepared to knuckle under to the chancellor and the board and be wary of the promises of the governor.
Both Gov. John Kitzhaber and the state Board of Higher Education have said they will support a bill that would allow the UO to take that step. But at this point no one knows if the Legislature will approve it, what powers the board would actually have or when it would be established.
Then there’s the potential conflict over the desire of local legislators and faculty to push that legislation in the February interim session and the desire of the governor and state board to wait until the 2013 session. That uncertainty and potential conflict could cause good candidates to pass on the UO, [CAE VP Gretchen Bataille] said.
People might throw a hat in the ring, “but will they accept (the job) until it’s very clear whether they have a separate board or they’re still governed by the larger (state) board? I think that’s the bigger question,” she said. “The governance structure is what may slow down the final selection.”
Bataille said a number of other major public universities also are looking for new presidents, noting that searches are already under way at schools in California and Georgia. And uncertainty over university governance in Oregon could make those other opportunities more attractive.
“There’s a lot of searches going on, so there’s a lot of competition,” she said.
The expedited search sounds like another blunder. How can they hope to get the best candidate possible by June? This is inexplicable. Perhaps Berdahl is only willing to serve until then? But if that is the case — I have no reason to think so — it didn’t make sense for him to take the job.
It will be interesting to hear what he has to say at the Wednesday meeting on campus.
I agree – an accelerated timeline combined with uncertainty in the organizational structure does not bode well for this search. I can’t imagine that the board or Pernsteiner thought that far into the future when they decided to fire RL. How can Kitzhaber has so much confidence in these jokers?
I think we shouldn’t invest too much hope in a new president anyway. We obviously want to get the very best person we can, and that person will be crucial, not least in restaffing the top admin, but the fate of the institution is up to the rest of us — faculty, staff, students, alumni, donors, well-wishers (if such can be located). The accelerated timeline for the search is a function of Berdahl’s limited availability. It was either get him, and live to fight another day, or fold up the tent completely. Next up: fight OUS at every turn.