Leadership, fundraising skills cited as traits for next chancellor

The next occupant of the chancellor’s office needs to be a strong leader, an energetic fundraiser, a student advocate, a supporter of the humanities, a legislative troubleshooter, appreciative of a global view — and that’s just the start.

A series of three community forums seeking feedback on the traits and skills needed in the next chancellor emphasized not only the breadth of the job, but the depth of talent that it demands.

“The person who occupies this position is going to have to have a thick skin, a long fuse and the kind of dynamic personality that, regardless of the issue, is going to help connect the chancellor to whatever constituency he or she is dealing with,” said John Stevens, a music professor.

The chancellor search-and-screen committee, which sponsored the forums, has begun seeking a replacement for Chancellor John D. Wiley, who has announced that he will step down in September.

Marsha Mailick Seltzer, chair of the committee, said comments gathered at the sessions will provide important guidance as the search proceeds. To date, the committee has received nearly 200 nominations for the post.

“Part of what we were hoping to do through these forums is to make sure that our list of qualities is responsive to the all the constituencies of campus, as well as the larger community,” she said.

Sophomore Lauren Crane told the panel that the university should seek a leader committed to students.

“We need a leader who will foster leadership, believe in us and believe that we can make a difference,” Crane said.

Mark Bugher, director of University Research Park, called for the next chancellor to have a broad commitment to the university’s role in economic development, job creation and technology transfer.

He pointed out that the chancellor sits on the Greater Madison Chamber of Commerce board of directors, as well as the boards of the research park and the Wisconsin Alumni Association.

“The university is the most important economic development enterprise in our region, perhaps even in our state,” Bugher said, urging the panel to consider candidates’ economic development credentials along with their academic qualifications for the job.

Mike Olsen, a graduate student in German, said that one of the strongest credentials a chancellor can possess is a strong academic record and an appreciation for the tradition of shared governance.

“One problem today is that a lot of universities are following the corporate university model, where the chancellor is the CEO and there tends to be a top-down decision-making process,” Olsen said. “We need more discussion and more communication.”

Adrienne Pagac, a graduate student in sociology, stressed that the next chancellor must appreciate the role of graduate students in the university’s research mission.

“Our research does have an economic value to the state,” Pagac said. “There are many graduates who remain in the state of Wisconsin and use what they learned here to create new businesses and better the lives of the people of the state of Wisconsin.”

The next chancellor also needs to take a broad view of the university, and understand how its component parts work together, said Kaja Rebane, a graduate student in environmental studies and agricultural and applied economics.

“We need to be a lot more interconnected,” said Rebane, who is also co-president of the Teaching Assistants Association. “We need somebody able to take a holistic view and understand where different people are coming from and be able to work with them.”

Ann Groves Lloyd, associate dean for student academic affairs in the College of Letters and Science, called for a chancellor able to maintain good relations with the state Legislature.

“We need someone to translate what we do here and show the value of shaping people for the future,” she said.

That sentiment was echoed by Jerry Campbell, professor agricultural and applied economics, who wants a leader who can “articulate greatness in terms that resonate with all citizens.” The next chancellor, he said, should be able to convey the university’s broad usefulness to all Wisconsinites.

Anjali Sridharan, university business liaison in the Office of Corporate Relations, emphasized the importance of having a chancellor who sees the value of reaching out to businesses — both big and small.

A strong appreciation of the university’s global presence is also needed in Wiley’s successor, said Masarah Van Eyck, director of communications in the Division of International Studies.

“We need a chancellor who doesn’t think the boundaries of the campus end at our state but, in fact, encircle the globe,” she said.

The next chancellor should also recognize the role that humanities play on campus, and their role in a strong educational mission, said Charles James, who holds joint appointments in the Department of German and the Department of Curriculum and Instruction.

“Our humanities programs at this university have been less funded than they should be in an era when we’ve become more and more global,” James said.

Environmental stewardship should also be a priority in the search, said Mitra Jalali, a senior in political science. She urged that the next chancellor be able to stress energy conservation, sustainability and eco-friendly policies.

“I would really like to see our next chancellor openly supportive of green policies,” she said.

Rick Marolt, a business school lecturer, also urged that Wiley’s successor be sensitive to animal welfare issues and the ethics involved in animal research, set a high ethical standard and “be willing to get in a public forum and defend that standard.”

The university’s next chancellor should also be ready to tackle faculty retention issues, said Lawrence Casper, assistant dean for research at the College of Engineering.

“We need to be concerned with the erosion of our faculty,” said Casper, who urged that the campus’s next leader have “exquisite fundraising skills” to help establish more endowed professorships.

The 23-member search and screen committee will evaluate candidates for the job, and plans to submit a list of five finalists to UW System president Kevin Reilly and the Special Regents Committee before the end of the semester.

Those finalists are expected to come to campus in early May to meet with faculty, staff, students, administrators and community leaders. The full Board of Regents plans to appoint Wiley’s successor in early June.

For more information on the search, and to express your thoughts on qualities needed in the next chancellor, visit http://www.chancellorsearch.wisc.edu.