A bit of transparency would be welcome as the search for a new chancellor to head the University of Texas System gets underway.
UT Chancellor Bill McRaven, 62, plans to step down at the end of the current academic year, citing health concerns. He has been head of the state’s largest university system since 2015.
McRaven, who had no experience in higher education administration, was considered an unconventional choice when he was hired in 2015. A former Navy SEAL who retired as a four-star admiral, he came with an impressive résumé that included having directed the mission that resulted in the killing of Osama bin Laden.
The chancellor, a UT grad, plans to teach at the UT-Austin LBJ School of Public Affairs after he steps down as the system’s top administrator.
Sara Martinez Tucker, UT System board chairwoman, has named the UT System’s board vice chairmen, Jeffery Hildebrand and Paul Foster, to a five-member nomination committee. The other two members are James Huffines and Donald Evans, both former chairmen of the UT System governing board.
But noticeably missing from the committee is representation from South Texas.
We urge Tucker, a native of Laredo who resides in Dallas, to seek input from diverse communities as the process moves forward with reviewing applicants for this important appointment.
State law allows public governing boards to name a sole finalist for the job, but it is not a requirement. Naming only a single finalist does not allow an opportunity for public input on the short list of candidates the committee will have under consideration.
No one is saying there have been problems with the way previous committees have operated. In fact, some of the last selection committees should be commended for not bending to political pressure from the Governor’s Mansion on who should get the job.
The process, however, deserves to be conducted in a more open manner.
A list of possible candidates to fill his post is already floating around. The list includes Chairwoman Tucker, former Education Secretary Margaret Spellings, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson and former Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison.
Internal candidates whose names have surfaced include that of UT Health Science Center at San Antonio President William Henrich.
The UT System enrolls more than 234,000 students and is one of the state’s largest employers, with an annual budget of $18.3 billion.
We all have a vested interest in the selection of the system’s top administrator. Let’s be open about it.