UVA announces presidential search committee

A special committee charged with seeking and recommending a candidate to the UVA Board of Visitors to be the ninth president of the University has been established as required by the board’s manual, Rector William H. Goodwin Jr. announced today.

“The most important responsibility of the Board of Visitors is to appoint the president of this great university,” Goodwin said.  “The board is committed to finding the absolute best person to build on President Teresa Sullivan’s accomplishments and the distinguished legacy of the University of Virginia’s previous presidents.”

Goodwin, who will co-chair the special committee with Vice Rector Frank M. “Rusty” Conner III, announced the other members of the committee, which comprises 11 board members, five faculty members, two students, a senior member of the UVA Medical Center management team and three former board members – including two former rectors. Of the 22 members, 15 are alumni.

The special committee members are:

Representing the Board of Visitors:

• William H. Goodwin Jr. (Darden ’66), Rector (co-Chair)
• Frank M. “Rusty” Conner III (College ’78, Law ’81), Vice Rector (co-Chair)
• Mark T. Bowles
• L.D. Britt, M.D. (College ’72)
• Whittington W. “Whitt” Clement (College ’70, Law ’74)
• Elizabeth M. Cranwell (College ’86)
• Thomas A. DePasquale (Commerce ’82)
• Barbara J. Fried (College ’04)
• Babur B. Lateef, M.D.
• John G. Macfarlane III (Darden ’79)
• James B. Murray Jr. (College ’68)

Student representatives:

• Phoebe A. Willis (College ’13), second-year Law and Darden student and student representative, Board of Visitors
• Aryn Frazier, fourth-year undergraduate student and a recently named Rhodes Scholar

Faculty and staff representatives:

• Pamela Sutton-Wallace, CEO, UVA Medical Center
• John C. Jeffries Jr. (Law ’73), David and Mary Harrison Distinguished Professor of Law and former dean, UVA School of Law
• Robert. F. Bruner, Distinguished Professor of Business Administration and dean emeritus, Darden School of Business
• Michael F. Suarez, S.J., University Professor of English and director, Rare Book School
• Margaret Foster “Mimi” Riley, chair of the Faculty Senate and Professor of Law
• Jahan Ramazani (College ’81), University Professor and Edgar F. Shannon Professor, Department of English

Alumni representatives:

• Thomas F. Farrell II (College ’76, Law ’79) CEO of Dominion Resources Inc., and former rector, Board of Visitors
• Victoria D. Harker (College ’86), COO of Tegna Inc., former member of the Board of Visitors, and former chair of the UVA Alumni Association Board of Managers
• George Keith Martin (College ’75), managing partner, McGuireWoods LLP, and former rector, Board of Visitors

“The special committee members represent a broad spectrum of our University community and have the experience and knowledge to help inform the board’s search to successfully identify UVA’s ninth president,” Goodwin said. “On behalf of the University, I wish to thank each of these distinguished members for devoting their time and talent during what I believe to be an exciting time in the life of the University of Virginia.”

Goodwin said the committee members will establish several subcommittees that will seek input from students, faculty, staff and alumni as to what qualifications and traits they believe are important for the next president to possess. Additionally, the committee will invite their constituencies to attend town hall meetings – including in Charlottesville, at the College at Wise and in other cities in the commonwealth and across the nation – with the expectation that by early spring, information will be compiled into a clear and concise profile of the type of president the University seeks to attract.

An executive search firm will assist the committee. A dedicated website will be developed so that individuals may contact the committee directly and share their views.

“We intend to conduct a thorough and transparent search,” Goodwin said.  “We have no timetable in mind in which to conclude the search, but we intend to be deliberate.”

The special committee’s first meeting is scheduled for Feb. 20.