Dear Faculty, Staff, Students, Parents, and Alumni:
Since President Crutcher’s announcement last month that he had asked the Board of Trustees to begin the search for his successor, the Board has begun putting in place the foundation for a search to begin this fall. We write today with an update.
THE SEARCH COMMITTEE
First, we are pleased to announce the composition of the Presidential Search Committee. The Committee will be charged with identifying candidates, reviewing qualifications, conducting interviews, and recommending finalists from which the Board of Trustees will select Dr. Crutcher’s successor as President of the University of Richmond.
The Board is deeply grateful to all who have agreed to serve for accepting this important responsibility. In establishing the Committee, we were greatly assisted by nominations of faculty provided by the University Faculty Senate and of staff provided by the University Staff Advisory Council, as well as by consultation with the leadership of the University of Richmond Alumni Association concerning alumni representation.
The Search Committee membership is as follows:
Katarina Acosta, ’22, ex officio
Ashburn, VA
R. Lewis Boggs, GB’78
University of Richmond Trustee
Chairman, Property Investment Advisors Inc.
Richmond, VA
Henry L. Chambers Jr.
Austin E. Owen Research Scholar
Professor of Law
John P. Hardt
Vice President and Director of Athletics
Kathy Hoke, Ph.D.
Professor of Mathematics
Chair, Department of Mathematics and Computer Science
James W. Monks, Ph.D.
Professor of Economics
Austin P. Neuhoff, R’91
University of Richmond Trustee
President, Austin Neuhoff Homes
Dallas, TX
Karen Gregory O’Maley, B’81
University of Richmond Trustee
Cincinnati, OH
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Paul B. Queally, R’86, P’14, P’16, P’20, Co-Chair
Rector
University of Richmond Board of Trustees
President, 5Q Capital, LLC
Palm Beach, FL
Susan G. Quisenberry, W’65, Co-Chair
Vice Rector
University of Richmond Board of Trustees
Retired IT Consultant-Principal
Quisenberry & Warren Ltd.
Richmond, VA
Patricia L. Rowland, W’77, GB’81
University of Richmond Trustee
Principal, Pat Rowland Consulting, LLC
Glen Ellyn, IL
Kevin Spear, ’22, ex officio
Framingham, MA
Terry Heilman Sylvester, B’76, P’03, P’05, P’05, P’10
Alumni Representative
Director of Parent Philanthropy
Office of Advancement
Wendell L. Taylor, L’98
University of Richmond Trustee
Managing Partner, Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP
Lorton, VA
Gil J. Villanueva
Associate Vice President and Dean of Admission |
The Committee brings to its work extensive knowledge of and deep commitment to the University’s excellence, a remarkable diversity of experience and perspectives, and high aspirations for the outcome of the search and the University’s future. We very much look forward to working with the Committee to recruit an exceptional new President who will continue to build on the University’s strong foundation and great momentum.
The Board has selected the firm of Spencer Stuart to assist the Committee in the search process. The Spencer Stuart team is led by
Michele Haertel, who oversees Spencer Stuart’s Education, Nonprofit & Government and Academia & Research practices, with her colleague
David Wick. They bring a great breadth and depth of experience and knowledge to the task of recruiting a strong and diverse pool of candidates for consideration. The Search Committee will be staffed by Ann Lloyd Breeden, Ph.D., Vice President and Secretary, and Molly Field, Special Assistant for Board Operations.
TIMELINE AND COMMUNITY INPUT
The Search Committee will begin work immediately, and the first phase of work will focus on soliciting and considering perspectives from the University community to inform the search. There will be ample time and opportunities to ensure thoughtful and thorough input. Some of these opportunities may be in-person meetings (within the University’s physical distancing guidelines) or virtual meetings with specific constituent groups; others will be virtual town hall meetings for faculty, staff, and students. There will also be a means for all members of the University community to submit thoughts via the search webpage in conjunction with these meetings. The focus of conversations with members of the University community will be the priorities the next President will be asked to address and the most important qualities and skills for the next President to possess. We look forward to your input and appreciate your taking the time to provide your perspective amidst the many other challenges of the semester. After this process is complete, the position description will be developed and posted to the
search website.
As you know, President Crutcher recommended that the search begin at this time due to the unknown ways in which the constraints of the pandemic might affect a search process, which will require meeting with candidates from around the country and indeed the world. It is, therefore, important to allow as much time as possible for a thoughtful and thorough search, and we will not, at this point, establish a specific timeline for the key milestones of the search process. The Board is committed to appointing a new President to begin his or her term no later than
July 1, 2022.
The Committee’s work will necessarily remain confidential throughout the search process. This complete confidentiality is, as you know, essential in order to recruit the strongest candidates. To the degree possible and appropriate, however, we will provide general status updates to the University community as the search progresses.
NOMINATIONS AND CONTACTING THE SEARCH COMMITTEE
The Committee welcomes nominations of possible candidates or any other information you wish to provide for the Committee’s consideration. Please forward nominations or contact the Committee at
RichmondPresident@spencerstuart.com.
The selection of the University’s President is arguably the Board’s most important responsibility. We are grateful to be aided in that work by the impressive and capable Search Committee. And we are confident that the opportunity to lead our University will attract superb candidates. With you, we look forward to recruiting an exceptional new leader for the University of Richmond.
In closing, we wish to reiterate the Board’s deep gratitude to all of the University’s faculty, staff, and students for your continued creativity, resilience, and determination in ensuring a successful fall semester amidst unprecedented challenges.
Sincerely,
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