LAWRENCE, Kan. ― The Kansas Board of Regents hasn’t approved how the process to replace University of Kansas Chancellor Bernadette Gray-Little will proceed, but the search may be closed to the public.
Gray-Little, chancellor of the university since 2009, announced last week she’s stepping down in the summer of 2017.
Gray-Little was hired after a closed search, and the Regents are also conducting a closed search for the next president of Kansas State University. President Kirk Schulz left Kansas State earlier this year to become president of Washington State University.
A closed process means the public doesn’t learn about the candidates vying for a position. Instead, they’re told only who was selected after that person has been hired.
Part of the reasoning for the private process is that candidates qualified to lead a large research institution like the University of Kansas likely hold leadership positions at other universities, and word that they’re looking elsewhere could negatively affect them professionally or prevent them from applying altogether.
“A lot of people think that that’s because we want to keep it secret,” Regent Bill Feuerborn told The Lawrence Journal-World. “You just have so many more applicants. … You want to get the best possible people for the job.”
Jonathan Peters, University of Kansas assistant professor of journalism, said the process should be more open.
