Curators on track to choose MU System President by year’s end
The University of Missouri System presidential search committee continued its second-round interviews of candidates in Kansas City Wednesday.
John Fougere, a spokesperson for the university system, said Wednesday that it was unclear if the committee would finish out Wednesday with any concrete recommendations for the curators but they are on track to have one announced by the end of the calendar year.
Fougere said the new president most likely will not officially take on the position until after Jan. 1.
The 16-member committee was formed in February and is made up of all the nine members of the Board of Curators as well as representatives from the four schools in the MU System.
Fougere said this search is different from any past searches for a system president because there’s more involvement by the larger committee.
“It has representation from students, staff, faculty, which has never happened in the past,” he said. “It’s import to get input from all areas and all aspects of the community in this extremely critical decision.”
The committee has already narrowed its search from the group in the first round of interviews that took place in St. Louis at the beginning of September. The search has been conducted with much secrecy so far. Candidates arriving for interviews entered the Kansas City Airport Marriott Hotel Tuesday and Wednesday through a white tent connected to the committee’s meeting room.
Fougere could not confirm Wednesday if there would be a decision but there could be one name or a list of possible names to come out of Wednesday’s interviews.
“The next step would be to take the finalist or finalists and those names go to the curators,” he said. “The board will make the final decision.”
There are no additional meetings planned for the search committee but the Board of Curators will be meeting Thursday and Friday at the University of Missouri-Kansas City campus.
Currently, Mike Middleton is serving as interim president of the MU System.
