Chicago State Faculty Wish List for New President Includes Public Apology

In the second part of the series chronicling the controversial Chicago State University presidential search, the faculty are calling for the state’s governor to remove the school’s board of trustees.

Days after the resignation of PSAC [Presidential Search Advisory Committee] members, Chicago State University’s Faculty Senate, in an unprecedented move, unanimously called on Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn to remove the university’s trustees, (which were appointed by former governors), before they could appoint a new president.

“The faculty of Chicago State University has lost confidence in the ability and motives of the Board of Trustees, and no longer trust their ability to fulfill their responsibilities,” stated the April 21^st letter.

Nevertheless, the board of trustees announced the appointment of Dr. Wayne Watson on April 29^th. He was signed to a five-year contract, and will reportedly make $229,166 a year, less than his current $300,000 salary as chancellor of City Colleges, where he oversees the system of seven community colleges that serves 115,000 students.

News of the appointment was greeted with shouts and boos from members of the university community at the board meeting. According to the Chicago Tribune, following the meeting trustee Rev. Richard Tolliver said Watson “most nearly approximates what we are looking for.”

When talking to colleagues from other institutions who have participated in presidential searches, says Dr. Ann Kuzdale, associate professor of history who served on PSAC, “They throw their hands up in the air and say, ‘You weren’t part of it (the search). You didn’t get to see all the applications. End of story.’ That’s the general academic perspective.