Chancellor search persists

Searching for a new chancellor

Hover over the scroll and
click the links below to read past
stories about the chancellor search.

Sept. 7, 2005 Chancellor
Albert Carnesale announces plans to step down on June 30,
2006.

Dec. 2, 2005 An
advisory search committee is named by UC President Robert
Dynes.

Dec. 8, 2005 The first search committee meeting
is held.

March 10, 2006 The
committee narrows down candidates, and UC spokeswoman Linda
Williams said the “goal is not to exceed the March
deadline.”

April 28, 2006 Deborah
Freund, provost at Syracuse University, is allegedly named as the
sole remaining candidate to replace Chancellor Albert
Carnesale.

Early May, 2006 Freund
withdraws from candidacy, citing “family conflicts,”
but search committee members said the search will not have to start
from scratch.

June 16, 2006 Norman
Abram is named interim chancellor while search continues.

Oct. 16, 2006 The most recent search committee
meeting is held.

Monday marked another meeting day for members of the Chancellor
Search Advisory Committee to discuss candidate recommendations of
those vying to be the next UCLA chancellor. For just shy of a year,
the advisory search committee has continued its work to review
applicants for the chief executive position with the purpose to
eventually forward a recommendation to UC President Robert Dynes.
Dynes is then expected to forward that recommendation to the UC
Regents for final approval. “The meeting (Monday) was a
regularly scheduled meeting, and the process is confidential, so
what was discussed is private,” said Paul Schwartz, a
spokesman for the University of California Office of the President.
“Things are proceeding well, and the president is hoping to
be able to recommend a permanent chancellor to the regents before
too long,” he added. The search firm hired to solicit
candidates has said the search process is kept confidential to
protect the privacy of the applicants interested. The firm also
said that keeping the process confidential appeals to desirable,
higher-caliber candidates. Eleanor Brewer, a search committee
member, said the “search is ongoing.” Brewer also said
she is pleased to hear positive feedback about current interim
Chancellor Norman Abrams and the work he has done so far, referring
to Abrams’ admissions policy changes and active role in
protecting faculty and the research they wish to do. “This
allows the committee to continue its job” without haste,
Brewer said. Dynes appointed Abrams, a UCLA professor emeritus of
law, as the interim chancellor effective July 1, 2006. Abrams has
been a UCLA law faculty member since 1959 and has taught in the
areas of federal criminal law, anti-terrorism law and evidence.
Monday’s meeting was held via teleconference to
“consider matters related to the appointment and employment
of a new chancellor,” according to the publicly posted
agenda. The meeting date was made public to comply with the
pertinent open-meeting laws, but it was not open to the public.
Though the confidentiality of the process has been criticized,
earlier this year the committee held forums to allow people to
discuss the characteristics they would like to see in the next
chancellor. In late April a candidate’s name was leaked
““ Deborah Freund, provost at Syracuse University. But that
was not pursued because only days later, Freund withdrew from the
race citing “family conflicts.” Alberto Pimentel, the
vice president at A.T. Kearney, a search firm hired to recruit
candidates, said the committee did not have to start from
“ground zero” and that they are in “good
shape” with respect to progress. The goal is to forward a
recommendation before the end of the academic year, according to
UCOP.

Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *