The Board of Trustees and the University Search Committee plan to name Temple’s eighth president sometime in mid-May.
The Board of Trustees on Dec. 14 appointed a 15-person committee to aid in the search for Peter J. Liacouras’ replacement. The committee consists of 10 trustees, two faculty representatives, one alumni representative, one administrative representative and the president of Temple Student Government.
After publishing an advertisement in education journals and hiring an executive search firm, the committee is sifting through dozens of prospects and starting the initial interviewing stage. The committee will then recommend one or more candidates to the Board of Trustees and await its final decision.
“The University needs someone who has demonstrated leadership, has an appreciation for an academic-medical setting and an understanding of an urban-based university,” said George Moore, university counsel and secretary of the Board of Trustees. “They will also have to be an effective communicator and have experience working with the state legislature.”
Making sure Temple students are well-prepared for their careers and making sure the university gets sufficient funds from the state are two important challenges for the next president, Moore said.
The Board of Trustees has not had to search for a new president in the past generation: Peter J. Liacouras has been the university’s president for 18 years.
“Some things that were appropriate then are not appropriate now,” said Moore, referring to the search.
The new president — whoever it may be — will face pressing issues such as Temple’s increasing undergraduate enrollment, the shortage of available campus housing and the constant change in learning technologies.
Robin Kolodny, a professor in the Political Science Department, thinks the next president should have an agenda that focuses on the faculty.
“I would like to see the next president committed to replenishing the faculty,” Kolodny said. “The faculty has shrunk in the past couple of years and we need to hire more people to replace those that have retired.”
Students said they would like to see cheaper parking prices, more housing and better security.
“This is my second year at Temple University and I think the new president should keep the tuition low and keep the present improvements growing,” said Dan Pietrzak, a Civil Engineering major.
Others cited campus cohesion as an important issue for the next president to deal with.
“I would like the next president to bring the students on campus together,” said Heather Fritz, an Elementary-Special Education major. “We need more safe places to go and it would be nice to have somewhere on campus to hang out after a game.”
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