UND is currently searching for the 12th president in the university’s history. With president Robert Kelley retiring in January, an interim president will take over for the remainder of the 2016 spring semester.

The State Board of Higher Education in charge of picking the interim president. Members of the board are looking for candidates with a connection to the university and previous experience in an administrative role. Likely candidates include: Jim Ozbun, former president of NDSU, Larry Skogen, Bismarck State College president, David Clark, former interim president of Bismarck State College and Cynthia Pemberton, Dickinson State University provost according to the Grand Forks Herald.

It seems the SBHE is looking for former presidents of smaller public universities in North Dakota. We would encourage the board to expand their scope and look for candidates outside of the state. Doing so would increase the number of candidates, therefore increasing the quality of applicants.

With a new president taking office in July 2016,  we think UND is at a critical time. In the past, presidents at UND have served for more than a decade. Whoever the next president is, they are going to struggle at first. Campus is in the midst of an identity change with the new nickname being voted upon in October.

Kelley said he hopes the new president, when they arrive, will see the value in what it is he has been doing. Kelley thinks the new president should modify his five-year plan to suit their goals and their vision for the university. The five-year plan that Kelley is talking about has a few goals. He wants to increase student scholarships by $100 million,  increase enrollment to 16,000 and continuing to renovate campus. Kelley said he hopes they’ll find his administration laid a good foundation going forward in the future with UND. The five-year plan was brought up at the ‘Wake up to UND’ event.

UND should also look internally for potential leaders. The school deans and administrative leaders on campus should also be considered for the position. They have an established relationship with UND faculty, staff and students that could be very valuable at the start of the year. In addition, candidates who have worked at the university know who to talk to in order to get stuff done. If their peers greatly respect the school deans or administrative leaders, then the transition period will be much easier.

Choosing a president is no easy task. The SBHE has to make sure that the candidate they choose not only qualifies for the position, but would also be a good fit for the university. We trust that the board will make the right decision and we’re excited to see what the new president brings to campus.