The first listening session held on campus in the Inn at Ole Miss ballroom had fewer than 40 attendees, only two of whom spoke on a single point of dissent.
Eight members of the board search committee sat before the attendees, but only one spoke. Alan Perry, board search committee chair and president of the Institutes of Higher Learning board, gave an overview of what the search would entail and said it was hard to determine a time frame.
“Even if we pick them this year, presumably, they have a job,” Perry said. “They are not going to be able to take it this year.”
Perry then posed a question to the crowd, “Should the successful candidate be an Ole Miss person?”
This brought an immediate response from Steve Vassallo, an alumnus who graduated in 1969 and is a member of the Oxford-Lafayette Chamber of Commerce.
“I think it is very important that the next Ole Miss chancellor is a graduate of Ole Miss,” Vassallo said.
Vassallo said the traditions, needs and values at Ole Miss are special and required someone who understands them.
Mary Riggs, who has lived in Oxford with her husband, Robert Riggs, chair of the music department, since 1987, spoke in support of an open search for the best candidate.
“I don’t think you need to only look at people from Ole Miss,” Riggs said. “I think we need someone more unifying. I just hope for a broader, wider leadership at Ole Miss.”
After these two points, when no more speakers rose at barely 15 minutes into the proposed 45-minute session, Perry spoke on why this session was held.
“What we’re looking for is not the names but the types of candidates you want to see in the chancellor,” he said. “This was set aside for the alumni.”
Perry said he expected a larger turnout for this session, but believed attendance would grow with the return of the school year.
Bill Funk, chancellor search consultant, introduced himself to the crowd. Funk, who Perry said has worked on many presidential search committees, will serve as a mediator for the online name submissions and decide who is viewed by the search committee. He will also aid in reviewing applicants’ resumes.
Chancellor Search Consultant, Bill Funk, explains his position and answers questions during an alumni listening session on Tuesday. (DM Photo | Logan Kirkland)
“My job is to do everything possible to develop as strong and as deep a pool (of candidates) as possible,” Funk said. “It is always an asset to have a connection to a university, but we’re looking for the best candidate we can find.”
This, Funk said, was the first listening session he has attended and, while the speakers certainly gave him food for thought, he hoped for more participation in the fall.
“I think you have to look at it in the totality of things,” Funk said.
