Wanted: A higher education professional who is accessible, budget-savvy, able to bring together different campus groups and willing to interact with the city.

These are just a few of the desired qualities repeatedly brought up regarding Syracuse University’s next chancellor by staff, faculty and students during open forums held by the chancellor search committee Monday.

Search committee members asked attendees to reflect on what the university has done well in the past or could continue to do in the future. The comments from the forums and other submissions will be used to create a profile of the ideal chancellor and aid in identifying candidates.

“I think of a chancellor as setting a tone internally and externally,” search consultant Chuck Jordan said during the student forum. Jordan explained to attendees that each comment or concern they had for SU relates back to the chancellor in some way.

Chancellor Nancy Cantor announced Oct. 12 she plans to leave the university when her contract expires in 2014. The committee is expected to interview candidates in the summer and end its search by November or December.

Michele Haertel and Jordan, representatives from the search firm, Spencer Stuart, hired to assist in the search, moderated the discussions. Search committee chair and Vice Chair of the Board of Trustees Joanne Alper and other members of the search committee were also present.

The university’s budget, campus diversity and community ties were brought up in each forum. Forum attendees also expressed they would like to see the next chancellor as someone who is confident, accessible and a skilled communicator.

The faculty forum had the lowest turnout, pulling in about 35 faculty members. The staff and student forums each pulled in at least twice that amount.

At the staff forum, held from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Schine Underground, staff members said SU’s chancellor is seen as a leader in the community, and will need to be prepared to interact with the mayor and county executives.

It would be harmful if the university cut ties with the city, said Eric Holzwarth, deputy director of the Renée Crown University Honors Program. He questioned how the search committee would assess a candidate’s community engagement when candidates likely don’t have experience working in the area.

Alper said the point of the forum and other discussions was to gauge university interests. There is currently no decision on how the university will move forward with community engagement.

Staff members said they would like to continue programs that require funding, such as providing financial assistance to students and continuing off-campus programs, but this means pressure on the university’s budget.

Mike Mattson, executive director of development, said SU’s Billion Dollar Campaign is only a start.

“We need to look forward to the next billion or two billion because it’s going to cost a lot of money to reach out and do these things we’ve talked about,” Mattson said.

Faculty, who met from 4-5:30 p.m. in the Schine Underground, also discussed how the university could balance traditional academics and research with new techniques.

Craig Dudczak, associate communication and rhetorical studies professor, said he would like to see SU develop a stronger, forward-thinking vision, one that is “rooted back to the mission of a university as a university.” While he acknowledged the importance of community engagement, he addressed how the university lost its Association of American Universities affiliation, among other designations.

Sarah Redmore, an environmental and interior design professor in the College of Visual and Performing Arts, brought up the future of Scholarship in Action, the community engagement mission initiated by Cantor.

A handful of young faculty members in the design department had been hired in the last 3-5 years based on their contributions to that mission, she said, and they value community engagement funding for their research. Other professors from different colleges echoed her thoughts, noting that certain tenure structures took into account Scholarship in Action principles.

Students who attended the student forum, held in Maxwell Auditorium from 7:30-9 p.m. as part of the Student Association’s regular meeting, spoke on continuing the chancellor’s community engagement programs, creating a diverse and accepting campus, faculty accountability and university rankings.

One student from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry said he hopes to see the strong relationship between ESF and SU continue. ESF President Neil Murphy also announced last year he plans to step down from his position. He and Cantor have worked well together to foster a friendly atmosphere between the two schools, the student said.

Several students talked about personal experiences they had with Cantor, who had personally responded to their emails or attended their campus events. The next chancellor should also be visible to the students, they said.

“A lot of people look great on paper, but we need a person, someone who is going to lead us,” said Nia Boles, a sophomore psychology and neuroscience major on the pre-med track.

Open forums will continue through March. Discussions with the local campus community will take place in the next few days, and will be followed by talks with the national and international SU community during the next month.

Published on March 19, 2013 at 2:33 am