Faculty, staff, alumni offer criteria for search
Members of the Faculty Senate, Staff Assembly and the National Alumni Association list accessibility and increasing academic excellence among several criteria they would like in a new chancellor.
By Antoinette Vega
Staff Reporter

Accessibility to the chancellor, increasing academic excellence and allocating funds were some of the top priorities mentioned in three meetings held by the chancellor search committee with the Faculty Senate, Alumni Board and Staff Assembly.

The three meetings, held Thursday, Friday and Tuesday respectively, allowed members to compile candidate criteria to be used by the search committee.

Maryruth Jones, an administrative assistant for Residential Services, said the next chancellor should be accessible.

“It is important to have a chancellor who is available to listen to students, faculty and staff so that everyone can feel comfortable talking with him,” Jones said. “Meeting with students and responding to their concerns such as Chancellor (Michael) Ferrari has done are ways of showing that accessibility.”

Jones’ opinion was one of many expressed at the meetings to R. Denny Alexander, the search committee chairman, and Bill Funk, a director for the executive search firm Korn/Ferry International.

Each meeting began with Alexander and Funk asking three questions to open discussion: what are the challenges a new chancellor will inherit, what type of leader is wanted and what attributes will bring someone to TCU?

More focus is needed on raising the current academic standards by increasing students’ workloads, said Bonnie Frederick, director of Spanish and Latin American Studies and a member of the Faculty Senate.

“More should be required from students in the classroom so they can produce at the same levels as students from state schools,” she said.

Andy Fort, a professor of religion, said academic excellence can be better achieved by allocating funds for faculty resources.

“More money directed toward the faculty could be used for science technology, increasing the number of faculty and reducing class loads,” he said.

A representative in the National Alumni Board and President of the Black Alumni Alliance, Joe Breedlove Jr., said visibility on campus and participation in the community should be a priority of the next chancellor.

“It is important for the new leader to be a tangible person to the student body so a connection is made with the university,” he said. “Ferrari was able to make that connection and the same should be expected in the future.”