Presidential search narrowed to nine candidates

BY: KYLE WOOSLEY
kyle_woosley3@mymail.eku.edu

The presidential search and screening committee is preparing on-site interviews for candidates applying for Eastern’s next president.

Nine candidates have been chosen as semifinalists and will be preparing for on-campus interviews the weekend of March 8 and 9.

“We’ve had a very strong pool of candidates,” said Craig Turner, chair of the Board of Regents and presidential search and screening committee. “One of the hardest decisions was narrowing the pool of candidates down to semifinalists.”

Turner said the interviews will take place Friday and Saturday.

Before the on-campus interviews, Turner said the search committee will be reviewing each candidates references on March 7.

Once the interviews take place and the candidates are narrowed down even further, Turner said the potential finalists will be given on-campus introductions to several university faculty, staff and administration members.

“It [campus introductions] will be faculty, alumni, pretty much a cross-section mix of staff,” Turner said. “There will be a number of different venues set up in order to meet them and interact with them.”

He said the on-campus introductions are expected to take place April 1.

“After those introductions take place, we will bring those candidates to the Board of the Regents to make a final decisions,” Turner said. “Obviously this will go into the decision-making process of the Board of Regents.”

Turner said the identities of the finalists would be revealed once the Board and committee decide on them.

“In the next week to two weeks we will reveal the candidates as well as some background information about the candidates,” Turner said. “As we get into the finalists of this process, it will be completely transparent. Everything stays confidential up until the finalists.”

The Board is expected to decide on the next president by April 15.

“We’re on track with everything to date,” Turner said.