A Message from the Co-Chairs of the President Search Committee of the Board of Trustees
To The New School community,
As promised in our January 23rd message, this is the first update about the process and progress in our search for The New School’s ninth president.
In the past several weeks since David Van Zandt announced his intention not to serve another term, we have begun to receive thoughtful feedback about the search process from members of our Board of Trustees, Boards of Governors, deans, faculty, and others. We have also had the benefit of a report from the search committee for the Parsons Executive Dean which includes many insights that are applicable to this search.
The commitment of our entire community to the mission and future of The New School is among our greatest strengths, and the Board of Trustees is committed to a process that will engage our various constituencies in ensuring that our search process reflects who we are, our hopes for the future, and the qualifications our next president will need to help us attain our goals.
Over the next several weeks, the Board will complete three essential early steps to ensure a strong search process. First, we will appoint a President Search Committee that will include Trustees, faculty, staff, and student representatives to help ensure that we have the perspectives of our various constituencies throughout our process.
Next, our early work will include robust efforts to seek input from the university community. Within the next several days, we will launch a special website that will be a vehicle through which the community can provide input to the search. In addition to the website, the Search Committee will host listening sessions to encourage broad-based thinking about the opportunities, challenges and priorities for a new president. We will also keep the university community informed of our search’s progress through regular emails and via the search website. More details about these and other collaborative activities will be shared soon.
Finally, we will choose a search firm that has substantial experience in international searches for higher education presidents. We anticipate interviewing a range of firms with the aim of finding advisors who can embrace our vision for The New School and work collaboratively within our community.
We are enthusiastic and energized by the opportunity to support the Board in its selection of the next president of The New School. With the support and assistance of the university community, we are confident that we will attract an outstanding leader to help us chart the university’s course in the years to come.
Joseph R. Gromek
Co-Chair,
Linda Rappaport
Co-Chair, President Search Committee