Search committee members named; university community invited to share in search process

A presidential search committee calls on the university community to share characteristics and qualifications the next president of the university should bring. 

 

Rutgers University Board of Governors Chair Mark Angelson today called on members of the Rutgers community to share the characteristics and qualifications they believe the next president of the university needs as the search for the 21st president begins.

Angelson, who will chair the presidential search committee, announced the committee’s vice chairs will be Deborah Gray White, Board of Governors Professor of History and professor of women's and gender studies in the School of Arts and Sciences at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, and William Best, a Board of Governors member, former chair of the Board of Trustees and an emeritus trustee.

“In the search for Dr. Robert Barchi’s successor, we seek another talented and visionary leader who will build upon Rutgers’ past progress and successfully shepherd the university toward a future with an abundance of opportunities and challenges,” Angelson said.

Campus town halls will be held across the university to involve Rutgers community members in the selection process, he said. University community members also are invited to share perspectives by email at presidentialsearch@rutgers.edu. Additional information on providing relevant comments and ideas can be found on the Rutgers Presidential Search website at http://presidentialsearch.rutgers.edu.

In July, President Barchi informed the Board of Governors and the university community of his plans to step down from the presidency at the end of the 2019-20 academic year.

The 23-member presidential search committee comprises broad representation of the universitywide community, including students, alumni, faculty, staff and board members. In addition to White, Best and Angelson – a member of Rutgers Hall of Distinguished Alumni and vice chair of the Institute of International Education, the world leader in international education and training that administers the Fulbright Scholarships and hundreds of other educational programs from offices around the globe – members who will bring diverse life and work experiences to committee discussions and deliberations include:

Martin Blaser – Henry Rutgers Chair of the Human Microbiome, professor of epidemiology and biostatistics, and director of the Center for Advanced Biotechnology and Medicine, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences

Sherri-Ann Butterfield – executive vice chancellor, Rutgers University-Newark, and associate professor of sociology in the School of Arts and Sciences-Newark

Jeffrey Carson – Distinguished Professor of Medicine, Richard C. Reynolds, M.D. Chair in General Internal Medicine, and provost, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences in New Brunswick

Francine Conway – Distinguished Professor and dean, Graduate School of Applied and Professional Psychology, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Hollis Copeland – Board of Trustees member

J. Michael Gower – executive vice president for Finance and Administration, and university treasurer

Daniel Hart – Distinguished Professor of Psychology, Faculty of Arts and Sciences-Camden

Joyce Hendricks – Board of Trustees member

Frank Hundley – Board of Governors member and Emeritus Board of Trustees member

Nimesh Jhaveri – Board of Trustees member

Robert Johnson – Sharon and Joseph L. Muscarelle Endowed Dean, professor of pediatrics, and director of the Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, New Jersey Medical School; interim dean, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences

John Keene – professor and chair of African American and African studies, and professor of English, School of Arts and Sciences-Newark

Barbara Lee – senior vice president for Academic Affairs

Nicole Lema – graduate student, School of Management and Labor Relations, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Kimberly Mutcherson – co-dean and professor of law, Rutgers Law School in Camden

Mansi Shah – undergraduate student, School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

Ernest Sosa – Board of Governors Distinguished Professor of Philosophy, School of Arts and Sciences, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

William Tambussi – Board of Governors member

Amy Towers – Board of Overseers member

Nancy Wolff – Distinguished Professor, Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy, Rutgers University-New Brunswick

The university will work with R. William Funk & Associates, an executive search firm specializing in higher education, to conduct the search. The list of candidates will be confidential throughout the process.

“We expect to move quickly and efficiently to find a strong set of candidates for the position, with the hope that we can appoint the next Rutgers president by the summer of 2020,” Angelson said.

Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a leading national research university and the state of New Jersey’s preeminent, comprehensive public institution of higher education. Established in 1766, the university is the eighth-oldest higher education institution in the United States. More than 70,800 students and 23,400 faculty and staff learn, work and serve the public at Rutgers University-New Brunswick, Rutgers University-Newark, Rutgers University-Camden, and Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences.