Ithaca College

Submitted on behalf of James W. Nolan Jr. ’77, Parent ’01, chair of the Presidential Search Committee

As we come to the end of the academic year, I’d like to share an update on the recent activities and next steps for the Presidential Search Committee. For quick reference, here is a summary of the committee’s overarching timeline, which I describe in more detail below.

• By the end of May: Share a summary of community input to date; finalize and share the prospectus.
• June: Establish key operating principles and practices.
• During the summer: Meet regularly to review candidates. Meetings are currently scheduled for June, July, and August.
• During the fall semester: Thoughtfully engage with the community, interview candidates, identify finalists, and ultimately proceed to final appointment and announcement of our next president by the board.
• Each month until the search concludes: Share an update with the whole IC community.

What We’ve Done So Far
On April 5, 6, and 19, search consultants Mary Gorman, Michele Haertel, and Ainsley Milner from Spencer Stuart spent time on campus in a series of 16 open meetings with students, faculty, and staff as well as President’s Council and a variety of specific constituency groups. Their aim was to gain a better understanding of Ithaca College and of the attributes that members of the IC community are seeking in our next president. The consultants and the committee also have been receiving feedback via emails from members of our on-campus and off-campus communities.

I want to thank all those who took the time to share their opinions, aspirations, and concerns so far, and I want to assure you that the committee and I are carefully examining all of your input. That input is critical for helping us develop a prospectus that most accurately and compellingly captures the college, and for helping us evaluate potential candidates.

If you haven’t had a chance yet to share your thoughts, it isn’t too late: You can send your input to ithacapresident@spencerstuart.com.

What We’re Currently Working On
The committee has met a total of three times since we were formed. We have reflected on the feedback already received, shared our ambitions for the college and our next president, and begun discussing the benefits and drawbacks of various approaches to the search process and logistics.

This month, we have been focusing on a few key activities:

Developing the prospectus
In collaboration with Spencer Stuart, we are crafting a prospectus that best reflects the college and the nature of the opportunity to lead it, relying heavily on the themes that have emerged from community input. We will share the prospectus with you and the public before the end of this month.

Defining our process’s guiding principles and protocols
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to searches of this significance. We seek to arrive at a process that is informed by:

• Previous presidential searches at Ithaca College
• The needs and special circumstances of the college today
• Approaches that other institutions, especially our comparison institutions, have used successfully
• Approaches currently accepted as best practices for presidential searches

As we’ve started our work, we’ve learned from our consultants and other search experts that, in recent years, potential presidential candidates have become increasingly reluctant to subject themselves to a search process that includes highly public campus visibility, such as those that have been common at IC for faculty, deans, and other administrative positions. We can understand this new reality, given the influence of social media and the rapid nature in which information now travels. The best candidates will already be employed by other institutions, and we want to ensure that they are willing to participate in our process in a manner that respects their need for confidentiality.

At the same time, we also recognize and deeply value the role of transparency and engagement in our community, particularly at this time. We want to ensure that the community is able to remain connected to this process, while also attracting the broadest possible range of talented candidates.

We have not finalized all the interaction points a candidate will have with the community, and we are currently evaluating how other institutions have achieved this important balance. If you'd like to share your ideas about how we might structure a process that maintains candidate confidentiality, provides exposure to the IC community, and serves as the best fit for Ithaca College’s needs, please send an email to ithacapresident@spencerstuart.com.

What Happens Next
This month:
Spencer Stuart will be in Ithaca to attend meetings of the Board of Trustees and the Alumni Association Board of Directors on May 19, to gather input from them based on the same questions they posed to our community in April.

We expect the prospectus to be approved by the search committee and the Board of Trustees by the end of May. The final prospectus will be posted to the search website and will be provided to all those interested in being considered for the position.

Over the summer:
I am grateful the search committee has collectively committed to working over the summer, which  will ensure that we maintain the momentum needed to help us attract the best candidates early in their search process and will help us stand out in what promises to be a crowded marketplace. The search for excellent candidates is highly competitive, and we are fortunate to have begun our process much earlier than many peer institutions who are planning searches.

You will hear from me at least once a month over the summer, with updates on the committee’s progress and the factors that we are deliberating together. 

What You Can Do
During the summer, here is how you can still stay involved:

• Provide input or nominations for candidates, by writing to ithacapresident@spencerstuart.com
• Use your networks—once the prospectus is final, let your colleagues at other institutions know that the search for our next leader is open
• Follow our regular update messages

Now that we’ve gotten under way, I am feeling even more optimistic about our process, the level of engagement and feedback from the community, and the incredible dedication and wisdom of our search committee. We appreciate all of the support we have received so far, and we are looking forward to the months ahead.

Sincerely,
Jim Nolan ’77, Parent ’01
Chair, Presidential Search Committee