UI President Search VI

Today's (November 25) biggest presidential search news is that while Governor Vilsack has not yet altered his "stay the course" stance regarding the Regents and their ill-fated process, or even expressed dismay at the Board's excessive emphasis on secrecy and confidentiality while violating the spirit of the Iowa Open Meetings law, he has at least announced his own secret meeting for 5:00 p.m., Monday, November 27, in Cedar Rapids. Included will be Regents President Michael Gartner, and at least three UI representatives. The stories regarding this development can be easily found from their headlines in the section "Media Stories and Commentary," below.

I have dealt with issues somewhat related to those raised in Wick Sloane's piece, below, in my
Nicholas Johnson, "Rethinking Higher Education," FromDC2Iowa, November 13, 2006, Nicholas Johnson, "Rethinking Higher Education," Iowa City Press-Citizen, November 13, 2006, and see the earlier, Nicholas Johnson, "'Free' College Education," September 9, 2006.
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This Blog's Focus on Regents' Presidential Search

Today's (November 25) is the sixth installment in this blog's report and commentary regarding the continuing saga of the Iowa Board of Regents' efforts to find a president for the University of Iowa. Here are links to the prior five: Nicholas Johnson, "UI President Search I," November 18, 2006; Nicholas Johnson, "UI President Search II," November 21, 2006; Nicholas Johnson, "UI President Search III," November 22, 2003; Nicholas Johnson, "UI President Search IV," November 23, 2006; Nicholas Johnson, "UI President Search V," November 24, 2006.

Each contains links to the full text of such relevant reports, media stories, blogs and other commentary as I have found. Together I believe them to be the most complete collection available anywhere on the Internet. However, note that the references are not repeated from one entry to the next, so the lists in all the relevant blog entries must be checked to get the full collection.

The entries also contain some commentary of my own. For example,

• The first contains, among other things, a summarized version of the facts, and a relatively long essay in paragraph 4 entitled, "What are the necessary qualifications for UI's president?"
• The second includes my effort to identify eight separate categories of issues involved in these stories, provide a bit of legal analysis of Iowa's open meetings law, and reference a little history from Regent Michael Gartner's past.
• In III I deal with the implications of the revelation that, among the reasons for rejecting the four candidates recommened by the search committee, these Regents, bedeviled by ties to health insurance company Wellmark in the past, may have nonetheless preferred the candidate they did because of her ties to a related health insurance provider. This story, of course, has implications for Governor Vilsack's presidential race, and the beginning of Governor-Elect Culver's term.
• The fourth includes a contributor's list of Regents-Wellmark ties, and comment about what the Regents'-authorized search committee "Criteria Check List" reveals about the lack of early Regents' concern about health services experience, and some of the problems with search firms.
• The fifth focuses on the UI's Provost, Michael J. Hogan, and what his rejection by the Regents (as one of the final four) reveals about the failures of the Regents' process.

Media Stories and Commentary

Erin Jordan, "Vilsack, Regents to Discuss U of I President Search," Des Moines Register, November 25, 2006, and earlier, "Vilsack and regents president to meet Monday about U of I search," Des Moines Register Online, November 24, 2006

Wick Sloane, "Higher ed faces bigger woes than president search," Des Moines Register, November 25, 2006

Diane Heldt, "UI provost unsure of next step; Hogan was among presidential hopefuls rejected by board," The Gazette, November 25, 2006, and earlier, "UI provost Hogan unsure of future plans; Was one of seven candidates interviewed for UI presidency," The Gazette Online, November 24, 2006

Diane Heldt, "Vilsack intervenes in UI search; Governor to meet with Gartner, UI officials to urge cooperation in presidential selection," The Gazette, November 25, 2006

Editorial, "Don't Jeopardize Open Government," Iowa City Press-Citizen, November 25, 2006

Kathryn Fiegen, "Vilsack to Meet with Regent, UI Officials," Iowa City Press-Citizen, November 25, 2006

Duncan Stewart, "Start the Search for Some New Regents," Iowa City Press-Citizen, November 25, 2006

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