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Provost Woodruff-Borden and CAS Dean Chris Poulsen wrapping up illegal search for new Clark Honors College Dean

Last updated on 04/19/2023

Back in 2020, the Senate concluded years of negotiations with UO President Mike Schill and got him to sign this policy giving the Senate and the Faculty a little bit of say in searches for Dean’s, etc. It requires that the Senate Leadership be consulted about the search and search committee, that a majority of the members be faculty, that at least one of the faculty be a Senator. Basic shared governance stuff.

Schill hated this, but I argued that our accreditors insisted on faculty input as part of their shared governance standards, and in the end he signed it as UO Policy:

Search Procedures for Academic Administrator Positions

Policy Number: 

II.02.02

Reason for Policy: 

To set forth the values that should inform leadership hiring practices at the UO and to articulate best practices for filling vacancies in high-level academic administrator positions. This policy pertains only to the positions articulated within the policy (or their substantially similar position if a title changes). Other positions not articulated within the policy were intentionally excluded.

Entities Affected by this Policy: 

Those involved in searches for academic administrator positions.

Responsible Office: 

For questions about this policy, please contact the Office of the Provost at (541) 346-3081 or [email protected].

Enactment & Revision History: 

27 May 2020 – Approved by the university president for enactment.

Our Provost – currently Janet Woodruff-Borden, is the “Responsible Office”, which I suppose means she’s responsible for ignoring it.

From Around the 0:

The search committee has invited two internal candidates to meet with campus stakeholders May 2-3 in the search for a permanent Clark Honors College dean.

Faculty members, staff and students will be invited to meet with each of the finalists during their respective campus appearances, which will include a public talk, conducted in hybrid mode.

The Clark Honors College offers the benefits and opportunities of a major research university while fostering an education which allows top students to gather, learn and grow within Chapman Hall.

“This is an important time for the Clark Honors College,” said Janet Woodruff-Borden, interim provost and executive vice president. “In the past few years, the college has experienced unprecedented growth, appointed core faculty in a new diversity of fields, updated the curriculum, instituted innovative courses in public engagement, and enhanced student advising and support. The dean will be responsible for overseeing the education and development of some of our most ambitious and motivated students. The ideal candidate will be a visionary leader who is committed to excellence in teaching and research, and who will continue to enhance the honors college experience for its students.”

Details about each candidate will be released in advance of each visit on the Office of the Provost website, along with an online survey where community members can share their observations.

The search has been led by a committee composed of honors college faculty members, staff and students and chaired by Chris Poulsen, Tykeson Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The Committee:

  • Chris Poulsen, (chair) Dean, College of Arts and Sciences
  • Dulce Castro, Second-year Advisor, Clark Honors College
  • Ulrick Casimir, Senior Instructor, Department of English
  • Kate Mondloch, Professor, History of Art and Architecture
  • Fred Poust, Advisory Board Member
  • Erin Morrison, Clark Honors College student
  • Katy Krieger, Search Advocate
  • Suzette Howard, Search Coordinator

I count 2 faculty, neither from the Senate, none from CHC.

7 Comments

  1. vhils 04/19/2023

    Wonder after doing this all this: “In the past few years, the college has experienced unprecedented growth, appointed core faculty in a new diversity of fields, updated the curriculum, instituted innovative courses in public engagement, and enhanced student advising and support” that the current ‘interim’ Dean isn’t being offered the opportunity to even apply for the position? Maybe ask HR, General Counsel and the Title IX office…

  2. vhils 04/21/2023

    getting chicken in your old age? or is just that CS pretends to be one of your bros?

    • uomatters Post author | 04/21/2023

      I’m not sure what your point is here.

      I heard several years ago that Carol Stabile was under investigation by UO’s Office for Civil Rights or whatever it’s now called, for allegedly discriminating against faculty from protected classes. I don’t know the details or the outcome.

      Regarding CS and this search, I’ve heard rumors that a) CS had been told she was not allowed to apply for the permanent position, and b) that she is a finalist, and the preferred choice of our Interim Provost. Not exactly informative.

      If you know more and want to share it, the comments are open. I know that many people in the CHC would like to have some actual information, and given the botched search process it seems unlikely that whoever JH does hire can expect much faculty buy-in.

  3. vhils 04/26/2023

    That’s old news, there’s a new CS investigation (by an outside investigator) that has been going on since sometime in 2022 that includes both Title IX and good old HR faculty misconduct and has up to a dozen complainants, including both faculty and staff from CHC. It’s also my understanding that she’s at least threatened a lawsuit in response to the investigation. That she could be a finalist under those circumstances is hilarious i.e. not funny at all.

  4. moss defender 04/27/2023

    sorry in advance to stray a little off topic but I noticed today (KEZI reported) some genius researchers at UO are feeding worms weed to see if stoned worms prefer eating junk food….is there anybody around here who can tell me what value this worm weed study might have ? this worms with the munchies at UO stuff makes the controversial “shrimp on the treadmill” research now seem very legit

  5. lotsa 04/29/2023

    The two finalists are Richard Taylor (physics) and Stabile. The many complaints made against Stabile by faculty and staff are serious and true, but the administration keeps promoting her. Expect them to do it again. The UO faculty should speak up. This is wrong.

  6. vhils 04/30/2023

    It’s midterms, so let’s do a little multiple choice thought exercise….If CS were not to get the job, which unit that she has previously belonged to would actually want her back:

    a) English
    b) SOJC
    d) WGS(S)
    e) University of Maryland
    f) none of the above, congrats CHC you’re up next!

    Seriously, name another person at the University who has been part of four different units (and returned from another job at another institution), none of which their previous units have/had any desire for their return.

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