Candidates for UND President

[GeauxSioux]

Or, is it possible that this search committee consisting of 16 people methodically found the best person for the job? Suggesting otherwise really does discredit their work. Take a look at the names on that committee. There are some pretty damn good people on there. How many of you can actually, honestly comment in detail what Dr. Smith's visionary concept for UND is? Why does UND need a UND guy? NDSU is doing very well without a NDSU guy? Can we please give him a chance?

I think everyone is willing to give him a chance. The Walrus, UND92,96 and I all wished him Good Luck and TRex is an NDSU guy.

You may be right that the committee wanted to make sure that the guy that they thought was best was the next president, rather than leaving it to the the SBoHE. I read where he got the nod from 15 of the 16 members. If no else received 12, I would say that he is their choice.

[The Sicatoka]

I feel on the end, they will find some excuse to start the whole process over again.

I doubt they'd start over, but the State Board wanted 3 or more names out of the 5. How they respond to just one should be interesting.

Part of me wonders if the committee only forwarded one name to retain some level of control over who is chosen. Like "GeauxSioux" said,

... may be ... the committee wanted to make sure that the guy that they thought was best was the next president, rather than leaving it to the the SBoHE.

[CDog]

I think everyone is willing to give him a chance. The Walrus, UND92,96 and I all wished him Good Luck and TRex is an NDSU guy.

You may be right that the committee wanted to make sure that the guy that they thought was best was the next president, rather than leaving it to the the SBoHE. I read where he got the nod from 15 of the 16 members. If no else received 12, I would say that he is their choice.

Agreed.

[Stromer]

I hope this was a good decision but I have my doubts. We are at a critical point in the history of UND. We need a leader with a vision that can step in and improve the university. If we pick wrong here, there may not be any coming back. I wish Kelley the best of luck if he indeed gets the job. He will need it, as he has the weight of this university on his shoulders.

[star2city]

Or, is it possible that this search committee consisting of 16 people methodically found the best person for the job? Suggesting otherwise really does discredit their work. Take a look at the names on that committee. There are some pretty damn good people on there. How many of you can actually, honestly comment in detail what Dr. Smith's visionary concept for UND is? Why does UND need a UND guy? NDSU is doing very well without a NDSU guy? Can we please give him a chance?

There are a whole list of requirements for a President, but some of the bigger ones for UND are:

Research - Academics - Medicine - Liberal Arts- Athletics -Enrollment

Kelley seemed to meet the hurdles on all the above and his Cal-Berkley PhD carries high perceptions in academic circles. Long probably came closest to matching the above. Smith, Elbert, and Johnson could have give an outsider a mistaken perception that UND is too interbred. Hopefully Smith and Elbert stay.

[mizzou/sioux]

I doubt that the so-called wrong selection in the opinion of some would put UND into an irreversible downspin. I think the fact that so many on the selection committee felt so highly of Dr. Kelley it speaks volumes on his behalf. Nowhere is it gospel that more than one candidate be forwarded to the State Board of Higher Education. There are quite a few credible individuals on the board which narrowed down the candidates. Knowing that, I think we should feel comfortable in abiding by their decision. Chances are there were quite a few outstanding candidates applying for the presidency, judging by the five finalists. As a UND graduate, I feel satisfied the selection committee made a good choice.

[sIoUxPeRsTiTiOuS]

Or, is it possible that this search committee consisting of 16 people methodically found the best person for the job? Suggesting otherwise really does discredit their work. Take a look at the names on that committee. There are some pretty damn good people on there. How many of you can actually, honestly comment in detail what Dr. Smith's visionary concept for UND is? Why does UND need a UND guy? NDSU is doing very well without a NDSU guy? Can we please give him a chance?

While I agree with some of your points, I have to respectfully disagree with the majority of them. We are in this position because we are replacing two administrators who really didn't get the job done, both of whom weren't "UND guys". Kupchella and Buning were both outsiders. We could have had Rob Bollinger in Buning's place. Why didn't he get the job? Because he was a UND guy with football ties. Sticks his neck out, and then feels compelled to leave because of an apparent ceiling within his current employment environment. See ya, Rob. How about Bruce Smith? The guy is the dean of one of the most, if not THE most visible academic departments on campus that brings in students from all over the country. I think it's safe to say that the aviation program is doing quite well at UND. Why won't he be considered? Because he's a UND guy and dare I say, *whispers*.......football alum? Well now, academia can't be having that now can they? It's sad to say, but I really think there are some hidden agendas all over campus with certain entities of the University. I honestly think Dennis Elbert would have been great as well. Wait, nevermind.....another internal candidate. No chance. Enter Mr. Kelley, who I must say does have a nice looking resume. Time will tell I guess. Perhaps Mr. Kelley will turn out to indeed be the best man for the job and for UND given its current position.

In my eyes, UND recently has gone out of its way to NOT hire internally. While I don't believe every hire should be a "UND guy", I do believe it is irresponsible to overlook internal candidates because they are exactly that - internal. It is my opinion that a few of the recent hires have had the best candidates right in-house. This trend is alarming. People stick their necks out for a job at the place they love, only to be turned down. I just hope UND doesn't lose guys like Bruce Smith and Dennis Elbert for the same reasons we have lost Rob Bollinger.

[The Walrus]

Bruce Smith- 10 votes

Kathleen Long -9 votes

Dennis Elbert- -6 votes

One of the three canidates for Athletic Director.....Barbara Burke

http://wyomingathletics.cstv.com/genrel/121807aab.html

Can she be far behind....?

[GeauxSioux]

Kelley green. His name fits the school colors.

[The Sicatoka]

Having an internal employee chair the committee to find the next president, who applied for said position and was evidently turned down, doesn't seem right in terms of principle. Who made that decision?

Uh, slight misalignment of facts there:

The president search committee is/was chaired by Paul LeBel (Dean of Law).

Greg Weisenstein (UND provost) applied for the president's job and is chairing the AD search committee.

[sIoUxPeRsTiTiOuS]

Uh, slight misalignment of facts there:

The president search committee is/was chaired by Paul LeBel (Dean of Law).

Greg Weisenstein (UND provost) applied for the president's job and is chairing the AD search committee.

You are correct Sic, my bad. I guess I will just put my tail between my legs and go back to my hole.

[The Sicatoka]

You are correct Sic, my bad. I guess I will just put my tail between my legs and go back to my hole.

Nah, no need. Lots of facts to keep track of make for easy misalignments. It happens.

[The Sicatoka]

The committee:

Paul LeBel (Chair); Dean, UND School of Law

Alice Brekke; Assistant to the President, UND

Rick Burgum; President/CEO, Arthur Companies, Arthur, ND

Bev Clayburgh; Former Vice President, State Board of Higher Education

Duaine Espegard; Member, State Board of Higher Education

Jay Fisher; President, UND Student Body

Cynthia Lindquist Mala; President, Cankdeska Cikana Community College

Glenda Lindseth; Professor and Associate Dean, UND College of Nursing *

Doug Munski; President, University Senate; Professor, UND Department of Geography

Tim O'Keefe; Executive VP, UND Alumni Association & Foundation

Myrna Olson; Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor, UND College of Education & Human Development

Judi Paukert; Community Relations Manager, Xcel Energy

John Paulsen; President, State Board of Higher Education

Bruce Pitts; Associate Dean, UND School of Medicine SE Campus, Fargo, ND

John Stewart; Owner, Fisher Motors, Minot, ND

David Yearwood; Associate Professor, UND Department of Technology

Kelley got 15 of 16 of those supporting him as a finalist.

Getting 15 of those 16 to agree on much of anything is a pretty good trick I'd guess.

And the ones in bold I are the ones I feel I know well enough to trust their votes.

* only vote not in support of Kelley

[coach daddy]

Once again, the people in charge have decided that being a grad, having a vested interest in the success of the institution, and bleeding sioux green for most of your life is not enough to make people believe you can this institution or athletic department. I'm embarassed for Mr. Smith and the work he has put into this University to not be given a chance to lead. Why is the most obvious decision so freakin hard for this school? Kelly might be good but Bruce Smith already is good and his love for this school/community is obvious. Damn!!!!

[UNDvince97-01]

The committee:

Paul LeBel (Chair); Dean, UND School of Law

Alice Brekke; Assistant to the President, UND

Rick Burgum; President/CEO, Arthur Companies, Arthur, ND

Bev Clayburgh; Former Vice President, State Board of Higher Education

Duaine Espegard; Member, State Board of Higher Education

Jay Fisher; President, UND Student Body

Cynthia Lindquist Mala; President, Cankdeska Cikana Community College

Glenda Lindseth; Professor and Associate Dean, UND College of Nursing *

Doug Munski; President, University Senate; Professor, UND Department of Geography

Tim O'Keefe; Executive VP, UND Alumni Association & Foundation

Myrna Olson; Chester Fritz Distinguished Professor, UND College of Education & Human Development

Judi Paukert; Community Relations Manager, Xcel Energy

John Paulsen; President, State Board of Higher Education

Bruce Pitts; Associate Dean, UND School of Medicine SE Campus, Fargo, ND

John Stewart; Owner, Fisher Motors, Minot, ND

David Yearwood; Associate Professor, UND Department of Technology

Kelley got 15 of 16 of those supporting him as a finalist.

Getting 15 of those 16 to agree on much of anything is a pretty good trick I'd guess.

And the ones in bold I are the ones I feel I know well enough to trust their votes.

* only vote not in support of Kelley

Sicatoka,

Where did you find that info in terms of who voted for who?

[The Sicatoka]

Where did you find that info in terms of who voted for who?

The Herald story says 15 of the 16 committee members voted to pass Kelley's name to the Board.

I got the "who didn't" name by asking someone in the media the question.

[GeauxSioux]

If the committee had followed the SBoHE requirement of submitting 3 names, we would have had

Kelley with 15 of 16 votes

Smith with 10 of 16 votes and

Long with 9 of 16 votes.

submitted to the SHoHE to choose from.

from The Walrus post.

If the SBoHE had gone with Long we would have a president who only got support from a little over half of the committee. As it stands now we will have a man with nearly unanimous support. I can live with that.

[CDog]

If the committee had followed the SBoHE requirement of submitting 3 names, we would have had

Kelley with 15 of 16 votes

Smith with 10 of 16 votes and

Long with 9 of 16 votes.

submitted to the SHoHE to choose from.

from The Walrus post.

If the SBoHE had gone with Long we would have a president who only got support from a little over half of the committee. As it stands now we will have a man with nearly unanimous support. I can live with that.

Thank you.

[GeauxSioux]

Not so fast my friend.... Is there an An outside challenger?

Kelley's greatest threat to winning the UND presidency may come from outside the State Board of Higher Education.

A band of UND alumni and others who attempted a few months ago to draft UND alumnus and Shippensburg (Pa.) University President William Ruud into the race is back at it, said Scott Hennen, a member of the group.

Hennen hosts Hot Talk, a news and opinion program on WDAY Radio in Fargo. WDAY and the Grand Forks Herald are both owned by Forum Communications Co.

Five of eight state board members have said they'd support giving Kelley an up-or-down vote rather than inviting in new candidates or reopening the search.

When asked about a possible Ruud candidacy Monday, University System Chancellor William Goetz said he does not think the state board will invite other candidates before interviewing Kelley.

[tony]

Man, I hope UND gets their next Tom Clifford this time. I'm really excited about what I'm hearing about Kelley. I just wish he could start tomorrow. Any chance that he could come in sooner?

Edit: typed "there", meant "their"

[UND-1]

Once again, what was the point of that post? Grow up.

I don

[GeauxSioux]

I first read Tony's post with a jaundiced eye, but I actually think that he is being sincere. I know that there are a lot of NDSU folks that don't care much for Kupchella and are looking forward to someone new. I could be wrong. It isn't even 9:00 and I've already been wrong about 5 times.

[UND-1]

I may have taken it wrong, if so I apologize. Just doesn't seem very sincere to me but who knows.

[tony]

I may have taken it wrong, if so I apologize. Just doesn't seem very sincere to me but who knows.

Hehe, I was being sincere... who knew I had it in me? I purposely didn't drag President Kupchella into it, but it is like Geaux said - I'm eager for somebody new for a number of reasons.

[The Walrus]

I may have taken it wrong, if so I apologize. Just doesn't seem very sincere to me but who knows.

It was a wolf in sheeps clothing...post (cheap thrill)

Do not kid yourself