Dean of students search underway

As IU prepares to say goodbye to Dean of Students Dick McKaig, the search committee for the new dean is working to find his replacement.

The committee, chaired by Hutton Honors College Dean Matthew Auer, is in the middle stages of the search process. Committee members are making cuts to the applicant pool but have not yet created a list of finalists.

“As you move forward, you are interviewing candidates, and eventually we narrow down to a final group,” Auer said. “We’re not at that point. The plan would be to have a group of finalists come and visit before the semester ends.”

The search began in November 2008, and Auer said the committee created an advertisement that ran in various higher education administration publications such as

The Chronicle of Higher Education to publicize the nationwide search.
The committee also has a search consultant.

Auer said the details of those who applied are confidential because of the applicants’ current job security, but the next step will be to submit a list of finalists to IU Provost and Executive Vice President Karen Hanson.

“Our goal is to have someone starting in the summer and have them ready to go when the new semester begins in the fall,” Auer said.

Before the final choice is made, Auer said there will be opportunities for students to meet the finalists, but he cannot say what the venues for that will be.

Those conversations with students will be a preview of the new dean’s job.
University Chancellor Ken Gros Louis said dedication to student activities and interest in students are the most important qualities needed, along with accessibility and a sense of humor.

Gros Louis said McKaig did a lot more.

“He may have been asked the same question 10 times by students, but he always answered it like he was hearing it for the first time,” Gros Louis said.

McKaig said the job is to be an advocate for students, establish close connections with them and be visible on campus, but he also said he doesn’t know what his follower will have to deal with.

“I don’t know what the challenges of 2011 and 2012 will be, so they just need to be a person capable and competent of dealing with those challenges as they come along,” McKaig said.

Auer said McKaig is a legendary dean, so even a candidate with years of experience in student affairs might not measure up. But he added that it would be unfair to seek a McKaig carbon copy.

“What they have to be is the next effective dean of students and vice provost for student affairs,” Auer said. “They may have their own style, they may have their own priorities – but the key thing is, they’ve got to be really effective and do a good job.”