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Members of search committee for SU’s next vice chancellor and provost plan future meeting

The search committee to find Syracuse University’s next vice chancellor and provost has yet to meet, but members say they plan on launching the search in the near future.

Tej Bhatia, a professor of linguistics and a committee member representing the College of Arts and Sciences, said the committee will officially launch soon and said Chancellor Kent Syverud’s charge to the committee “will provide guidance on the focus and direction of the search.”

“I would like to serve on this committee on principled grounds, namely whenever faculty or staff is called upon to serve, one should be willing to serve our academic community to the best of our ability,” Bhatia said in an email.

Every school and college within SU is represented by faculty members on the committee, except for the Martin J. Whitman School of Management and the College of Visual and Performing Arts. The undergraduate student representatives on the committee have not been named. Syverud said at the University Senate meeting that he plans to meet with the senate to discuss possible nominations for the chair of the committee.

The committee is composed of faculty, staff, students and members of the Board of Trustees. A chair for the committee has not yet been named.



Charles Driscoll said when Syverud asked him to serve on the committee, he felt honored. Driscoll, a professor in the College of Engineering and Computer Science, is now among the 13 members the University Senate approved Wednesday to be on the selection committee.

Driscoll, who is also a representative from the College of Engineering and Computer Science, said in an email that the committee has not met yet as a group and, as far as he knows, the committee members have not received a specific charge from the chancellor, other than being asked to serve on the committee.

Driscoll, however, said he heard some feedback regarding credentials of candidates.

“Colleagues, students and staff who have spoken with me hope we can find someone who is bright, thoughtful, a good listener, who would be a good spokesperson for the university, has experience and understands the various components of a major university,” he said.

He added the committee is also looking forward to seeing applicants who are skillful in managing resources and have the respect of the university and the local and national community.

“The provost is one of the most important persons and leaders at the university,” Driscoll said. “If the provost is successful, the university will move forward to effectively accomplish our mission and advance toward our vision.”

Patrick Neary, a committee member and president of the Graduate Student Organization, said it is important for graduate students to have a voice in the selection process. That’s because graduate students bridge the gap between many roles found at SU, he said. As a result, graduate students bring a unique perspective to the table, he added.

Neary said the new provost should be a person who can take into account classroom and research needs for the university’s students.

“Graduate students in particular are a very diverse group — many students are in professional schools, taking courses and looking for networking opportunities and work experience,” Neary said. “Others are on research tracks, looking for research or creative experience. We are looking for a provost that can blend all this together, working on strategic coordination between schools and colleges.”

Neary added that he is hopeful that the new provost will facilitate communication and leadership as the university develops projects relating to the Fast Forward initiative.





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