Senior Staff Search Updates

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Colleagues,

I write to share updates regarding two search process that have been or will soon be underway to identify new members of our Senior Staff.

  1. Vice President of the University and Dean of Academic Affairs: late in the spring semester and after conversation with our faculty, I invited faculty members interested in serving as the Dean to express their interest in the role. I convened a small committee to vet the candidates who came forward and asked the group to recommend to me whether each candidate was suitable for further consideration and whether we should proceed with an internal search or move to an external search process. I am grateful to Heather McCauley ’06, Trustee and chair of the committee, Florence Hines, Vice President for Enrollment Management and Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid, Jessica Sierk, Associate Professor of Education, Tina Tao, Coordinator of Retention and Academic Support, and Chris Watts, Associate Professor of Music, for their service on this committee.  I have accepted the committee’s recommendation that we proceed with an internal search. Thus, we will initiate an internal search process to identify our next Dean. I will expand the search committee to include additional representatives of the trustees, faculty, students, and administration. We will follow St. Lawrence’s historical practice of Dean candidates making a public presentation to the community and participating in interviews with individuals and small groups. Please stay tuned for next steps. If there are any faculty interested in standing for consideration as Dean who have not yet expressed interest in the role, they should contact me as soon as possible.
  2. Vice President for University Advancement: After interviewing a number of search firms, I have selected Susan VanGilder from Storbeck Search to facilitate the search for Tom Pynchon’s successor. Consistent with national practices for advancement leadership searches, I will chair a small search committee to conduct a targeted search for this role. I am grateful to committee members Ana Estevez, Professor of Biology and Psychology, Jay Ireland ‘77 Trustee, and Paul Redfern, Vice President for University Communications and Institutional Strategy for their service on this committee. Susan VanGilder will be facilitating listening sessions with various constituents, including trustees, senior staff, University Advancement leaders, members of the University Advancement & University Communications tripartite committee, and alumni, to hear their thoughts about the opportunities and challenges this role offers to candidates and about the skills, abilities, and experiences we should seek in our next Vice President for University Advancement. Please note that searches for advancement leadership are determined heavily by the candidate’s chemistry with the president. As such, we will follow an “inverted” search process in which I will engage with candidates as the first step of the process and determine who should be further vetted by the committee. Unlike the Dean search, this search process will not involve a public presentation or widespread vetting of finalists. 

I am excited about the prospect of identifying new St. Lawrence leaders through these two search processes, and remain grateful to Karl Schonberg and Tom Pynchon for their dedicated service during their roles as Dean and VP for University Advancement, respectively.

For those who were able to attend yesterday, I hope you enjoyed convocation and the reception at MacAllaster House and I look forward to another productive year. 

Thanks,

Kate Morris