Search Committee To Find New UW System President Is Named

Saturday, July 10th, 2021 -- 7:38 AM

A larger, more diverse search committee to find the next University of Wisconsin System president was named Friday, following a failed search last year that was widely criticized for breaking with tradition and not including members representing faculty, staff and students.

According to the Associated Press, the 19-member panel announced by the UW System Board of Regents will look for a permanent successor to Ray Cross, who resigned last year. The panel will include representation from a broad cross section of the university, including students, faculty, staff, chancellors and regents. The last search was led by a committee of nine people, half the normal number, and resulted in the name of just one finalist, then-University of Alaska System President Jim Johnson. The announcement drew criticism from faculty and alumni in Alaska, who pointed to two no-confidence votes against him and an accreditation issue.

There was an outcry in Wisconsin as well, with students, faculty, staff and others saying the search process was flawed from the start. Johnson later withdrew as a candidate for the UW job and resigned at Alaska. Former Gov. Tommy Thompson agreed in July 2020 to serve as interim president after Cross retired. Thompson remains on the job while the search for a permanent president commences.

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