Faculty Excluded from Presidential Searches
M. Bruce Bennett and A. Thomas Vawter
In "The Well-Tempered Search" in the May-June issue of Academe, Patricia van der Vorm argues effectively that service on search committees is "one of the most important responsibilities [faculty members] assume in professional life." As faculty members at Wells College, where van der Vorm serves as chair of the board of trustees, we found her argument persuasive, yet ironic.
Faculty and other constituencies played a very limited role in the choice of former Wells president Robert Plane and no part whatever in the choice of our current president, Lisa Marsh Ryerson. Plane was chosen as interim president in 1991 after the removal of the previous president by the board following a vote of no confidence by the faculty. An inclusive presidential search committee was established, and we expected a successful national search. However, the committee's work was abruptly terminated when Plane announced to the board his willingness to serve as president, whereupon the board immediately appointed him.
In February 1995 the board replaced Plane with Ryerson, a 1981 alumna of Wells who had been serving as dean of students. The decision to appoint Ryerson was made during a snowstorm when barely more than half of the board was on campus. There had been no prior indication or notification that Plane was about to be removed (or would resign). At a hastily called all-campus meeting, the community was informed that Plane had resigned, effective immediately, and that Ryerson would be Wells's seventeenth president.
The fact that there was no search, that the board acted precipitately and in complete secrecy, and that many trustees themselves seemed caught off guard by the rapid unfolding of events, raised questions of legitimacy that continue to haunt the campus and disturb many in the community several years later.
We believe one principal outcome of these events has been a diminution of faculty authority and ownership of important sectors of academic life at Wells, including areas where the faculty has unquestioned expertise. The specter of administrative and trustee fiat still weighs heavily, albeit often camouflaged behind an illusion of openness. Although our campus, like others, is fond of empanelling committees and task forces to study, report on, and recommend policy, the policy itself comes most often from the top down. The principle of shared governance frequently seems to be a charade, and many faculty members feel disenfranchised and demoralized. In our opinion, this state of affairs cannot be separated from the actions of the board in unilaterally appointing college leadership in the early and mid-1990s, instead of sharing that responsibility with faculty and others in the community.
Van der Vorm was not a Wells trustee at that time, and bears no responsibility for earlier board actions. Still, as faculty members and officers of the Wells chapter of the AAUP, we find her advocacy of thorough searches involving all segments of the community not only cogent but ironic.
M. Bruce Bennett
(English)
Wells College
A. Thomas Vawter
(Biology)
Wells College
Bennett is vice president of the Wells College AAUP chapter; Vawter is president.
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