UMass Amherst Alumni Association

News

Chancellor Candidates Announced

April 11, 2008

Dear Friends:

It is my pleasure to inform you that the Search Committee has selected four finalist candidates for the position of UMass Amherst Chancellor. The candidates are Martin Hall, deputy vice chancellor of the University of Cape Town; Robert C. Holub, provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the Knoxville campus of the University of Tennessee; Harris Pastides, vice president for research and health sciences at the University of South Carolina and executive director of the University of South Carolina Research Foundation; and Satish K. Tripathi, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs at the State University of New York at Buffalo.

The Search Committee has done tremendous work that has culminated with the selection of exceptional candidates for this critical leadership position, and the University owes it a debt of gratitude. Led by Trustee and UMass Amherst graduate Jennifer Braceras, the Committee brought diverse opinions and experiences to its task and served the University in an exemplary fashion. I believe that the Committee has identified outstanding candidates, any one of whom could be a terrific leader for our flagship campus. I thank each committee member for his or her service.

As part of the search, the Committee held an unprecedented number of public input sessions with faculty, staff, students and administrators, as well as a variety of other UMass stakeholders. They heard from alumni, elected officials and community leaders, and their input helped inform the Committee's thinking. Their engagement with the University's broader community strengthened the search process and strengthened the pool of candidates.

I am also pleased to announce that the finalist candidates have been scheduled for campus visits, starting next week.

All finalists will meet with a cross-section of campus constituencies, including: faculty, staff, students, administrators, alumni and community leaders. These sessions are an important step in the selection process.

In addition, there will be an open campus meeting from 2:45 p.m. to 3:45 p.m. during each visit. The schedule is as follows:

Dr. Satish K. Tripathi – Tuesday, April 15
Dr. Martin Hall – Thursday, April 17
Dr. Harris Pastides – Friday, April 18
Dr. Robert C. Holub – Tuesday, April 22

Campus visit schedule
7:30 to 8:30 a.m. Breakfast with Chancellor Cole
8:30 to 9:30 a.m. Faculty meeting
9:45 to 10:45 a.m. Staff meeting
11:00 to 12:00 p.m. Student meeting
12:15 to 1:15 p.m. Lunch with alumni and community leaders
1:30 to 2:30 p.m. Vice Chancellors and Deans meeting
2:45 to 3:45 p.m. Open Campus Meeting

For meeting locations, please visit:
www.massachusetts.edu/amherstsearch/campusvisits.html.

For more information on the search and background on the candidates, visit: www.massachusetts.edu/amherstsearch.

As the candidates visit UMass Amherst, I welcome your feedback. Your input will be extremely valuable as I prepare to make my recommendation to the University’s Board of Trustees. You can share your feedback via an input form available at www.massachusetts.edu/amherstsearch/feedback.cfm?survey=33. Input forms will also be distributed at each meeting during the campus visits.

Our next Chancellor of UMass Amherst can help us take our flagship campus to new heights, building on the well-established excellence of our faculty and students. The field of finalists is international in scope and distinguished by a wide breath of academic experience. Choosing among these candidates will be a very difficult task.

Thank you for your interest in the search process and for all that you do for the University of Massachusetts.

Sincerely,
Jack M. Wilson, President
University of Massachusetts