Dr. Bradley W. Bateman

On behalf of the Board of Trustees, it is my pleasure to announce the election of Dr. Bradley W. Bateman as the 10^th president of Randolph College. The Board of Trustees unanimously appointed Brad during a regular board meeting this past weekend. During a special ceremony held in the newly renovated Student Center this morning, we introduced Brad to those on campus.

Brad brings a strong passion for the liberal arts, stellar academic credentials and experience, and an extensive economics background. He is known as a gifted teacher, brilliant scholar, and natural leader.

Brad has served as provost at Denison University since 2007. In that role, he functioned as Denison’s executive vice president with direct leadership responsibilities related to curriculum and faculty. He also had oversight of libraries, computing services, intercollegiate athletics, off-campus study, the Office of the Registrar, and the Denison Museum. Brad worked as associate dean at Grinnell College in Iowa before assuming his current position at Denison. During his tenure at Grinnell, he chaired the economics department and was the Gertrude B. Austin Professor of Economics, while also fulfilling the role of acting director of the Center for Prairie Studies and of the Rosenfield Program in Public Affairs, International Relations, and Human Rights.

Brad will assume his role as Randolph’s next president July 1. He succeeds John E. Klein, Randolph’s ninth president, who will retire effective June 30. We are deeply indebted to John and his wife, Susan, for leading Randolph successfully through a difficult coeducational transition. Thanks to their hard work and dedication, Randolph is better positioned for the future.

The Board of Trustees would like to share our appreciation to the members of the Presidential Search Committee, who have spent long hours working with the nationally recognized executive search firm of Witt/Kieffer to ensure that Randolph received applications from high quality candidates. We attracted more than 90 strong candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds.

The Presidential Search website (www.randolphcollege.edu/presidentialsearch) includes more information about our 10^th president, including the press release, photographs, biographical information, as well as a video message from Brad. Information about the search process is also available.

Please join me in welcoming Brad and his partner, Cyndi Lee, who is an author and internationally respected yoga instructor, to our community.

Vita abundantior.

Becky Morrison Dunn ’70
Chair
Randolph College Board of Trustees

The Randolph College Board of Trustees cordially invites you to join us tomorrow, February 14 at 10:00 a.m. in the newly renovated Student Center for the announcement of the College’s 10th president. The new president will be introduced and welcomed during this special ceremony.

For those not able to attend in person, live streaming of the event will be available at www.randolphcollege.edu/presidentialsearch.

The announcement of Randolph’s 10th president comes after a nearly 9-month search process that attracted more than 90 strong candidates. The Presidential Search Committee was comprised of a mix of students, staff, faculty, alumnae, and trustees. These individuals worked diligently with Dr. Kate Haley of the executive search firm, Witt/Kieffer, to ensure that the candidates presented to the Board of Trustees were highly qualified and the best fit for our institution. We thank all of the members of this committee for their long hours and dedication.

Randolph’s Board of Trustees unanimously selected the next president of Randolph College during its regular board meeting this past weekend. The new president will follow Randolph’s current president, John E. Klein, who will retire June 30, after successfully leading Randolph through its transition to coeducation.

We hope you can join us either in person or via the live streaming on our website.

Thank you,

Becky Morrison Dunn ’70
Chair
Randolph College Board of Trustees

Dear Randolph College Community,

Happy New Year! As part of my regular updates on the Presidential Search, I wanted to report to you on the strength of the applicant pool to become the College’s 10th President. From October to November, the Presidential Search Committee solicited nominations and applications. Through the assistance of Dr. Kate Haley, our search consultant with Witt/Kieffer, we were pleased to receive a strong applicant pool. In total, we received over 100 nominations and over 90 applications.

Dr. Haley informed the Committee that she believes the pool is one of the most abundant she has seen, particularly as it relates to well-qualified candidates. The pool includes sitting presidents, provosts and deans, vice presidents from various areas of higher education, and a number of candidates from outside a traditional academic position. The pool is diverse, with strong female candidates and candidates of various races, ethnicities, sexual orientations, educational backgrounds, and relevant experiences. The Committee is pleased with the response to our call for nominations and applications.

The Committee has narrowed the pool to a smaller number of semi-finalists who in the upcoming days will be interviewed by the Search Committee in person before an even smaller number of finalists are named. As the search progresses, I will be back in touch to provide you additional updates.

I wish you the very best as the spring semester begins.

Sincerely,

Tom Faulders
Chair
Presidential Search Committee

Dear Randolph Community,

I am writing to provide an update on the progress of the search for Randolph’s 10^th president.

The Search Committee has sought to have as inclusive of a process as possible. In August, forums were held with our search consultant and various constituencies to develop a draft position specification. The draft document was then shared with these constituencies and town hall meetings were held to seek feedback. The Search Committee incorporated that feedback into the final document, which the Board of Trustees has approved.

The final position specification, which will be used in advertising the position as well as recruitment of candidates, is now available for the community to access at www.randolphcollege.edu/presidentialsearch. The document is not meant to be an exhaustive summary of the College, but rather a snapshot of the history of the institution, its current state, and what we desire of the College’s next president.

We are now at the point in the process where we are actively seeking candidates.  You will note  as you peruse the position specification, the attributes identified by our community as the most highly desired in Randolph’s next president. Should you be aware of an individual whom you feel meets or exceeds these attributes and may have an interest in the College, we encourage you to nominate them by emailing the search consultant, Dr. Katherine Haley, at randolphpresident@wittkieffer.com. The success of our search will depend upon the involvement of the entire Randolph community, and your nomination of strong candidates will immediately involve you in the search process.

Over the next couple of months there will be a concerted effort to develop the candidate pool. Advertisements will be placed in such prominent higher education publications and online communities as The Chronicle of Higher Education, Inside Higher Education, Diverse Issues in Higher Education, Women in Higher Education, and the American Conference of Academic Deans, just to name a few. Nominations will be sought from those on campus, alumnae and alumni, other leaders in higher education, and through the work of our consultant.

In December, it is anticipated that this candidate pool will eventually be narrowed to a group of semi-finalists, which the Search Committee will interview. The Committee will then forward three unranked candidates to the Board of Trustees for consideration. The timeline of the search process can be found on the presidential search website (www.randolphcollege.edu/presidentialsearch).

We will continue to update our community on the search progress. However, it is important to note that we are entering the confidential stage of the search, and the amount of detail we are able to provide is limited based on the candidate’s needs and desires. Thank you to each of you for your involvement in this important process.

Sincerely,
Tom Faulders
Chair

Presidential Search Committee

Dear Randolph College Community,

Progress continues on the search for Randolph’s 10^th president. This past week, faculty, staff, and students provided feedback on the position specification draft at town hall meetings. Similar opportunities will occur this week with the Board of Trustees and the Alumnae and Alumni Association. This input will be valuable in making the position specification reflect our needs and desires for the College’s next president.

Today I am pleased to announce the launch of a website dedicated to the presidential search. This website, www.randolphcollege.edu/presidentialsearch, will serve as the public hub for information about the presidential search. On this site, potential candidates can learn more about what the College is looking for in its next president, and the Randolph community can monitor progress of the search. Updates will be posted periodically, so I encourage you to visit the site throughout the search. 

After the Board of Trustees approves the final draft, the next major milestone in the search will be to formally advertise the position and seek nominations and applications. I will update you when we reach this milestone, so that you may see the final position specification and nominate candidates for the position.

Again, I thank you for your participation in this important process. Should you have any questions or comments about the search, please do not hesitate to contact myself or Wes Fugate, who serves as staff to the Committee.

Sincerely,

Tom Faulders
Chair
Presidential Search Committee

Dear Members of the Randolph College Community,

I trust the academic year is off to a wonderful start. As indicated in previous communications, I will periodically update everyone on the search for the College’s next president. The Search Committee has begun the presidential search process by preparing a draft statement to capture what we all want in our next president. To this end, we have engaged a broad group of constituencies of Randolph College to articulate their hopes for the future of the College and the professional talents and personal qualities they believe Randolph’s 10th president should possess. In mid-August, our search consultant Dr. Kate Haley from Witt/Kieffer visited campus and met with various groups of faculty, staff, and students, while also having teleconferences with members of the Board of Trustees and the Alumnae and Alumni Association.

Dr. Haley, with assistance from those on campus, has developed a presidential profile, which the Presidential Search Committee is reviewing to ensure that it accurately captures what the College needs in its next president. When the Committee completes this work this week, the draft profile will be shared with the campus community, as well as members of the Board of Trustees and the Alumnae and Alumni Association Board for further comments. I would like to invite each of you to attend one of the following town hall meetings to share your feedback:

Town Hall Meeting for Faculty
September 4, 4:30 p.m.
Martin 315     

Town Hall Meeting for Staff
September 6, 4 p.m.
Martin 315

Town Hall Meeting for Students
September 6, 5:15 p.m.
Martin 315

Following these sessions and similar sessions with members of the Board of Trustees and members of the Alumnae and Alumni Association Board, the Committee will once again refine the profile based on input gathered from the College community. We anticipate publishing the profile, placing ads, and beginning the search in earnest on or around October 1.

At that point, members of the community will be encouraged to submit nominations for the position. This will also be the point in the search where you will hear less from me about the progress of the search, as Dr. Haley and her associates at Witt/Kieffer will be actively recruiting candidates, and there will be little to report.

By the end of the year, the Committee will narrow the pool of applicants to approximately 8-10 semifinalists who will be interviewed in early 2013. The Committee has been charged to submit the names of three unranked candidates to the Board of Trustees for their consideration. It is anticipated that the Board will select among these three candidates by mid-March.

While all of us would like to have the finalist interviews open to the full community, current best practices for presidential searches across the nation suggest that the College will receive higher quality applicants if the search remains as confidential as possible. In today’s market for college and university presidents, applicants grow increasingly concerned that knowledge by those on their home campus that they are considering a new opportunity will jeopardize their current position or their ability to be successful in that position. The Board will ask each of the three finalists if they are comfortable participating in an open process. If all three agree to an open process, the full community will have the opportunity to meet the finalist candidates. If one of these candidates, however, expresses a desire for their candidacy to remain confidential, all candidates will remain confidential. Our goal is to announce the College’s 10^th president in early 2013.

I want to thank each of you again for your participation in this important process. I also want to encourage you to attend one of the town hall meetings to provide your input into the search. Should you have any questions or comments about the search, please do not hesitate to contact myself or Wes Fugate, who serves as staff to the Committee.

Sincerely,

Tom Faulders, Chair
Presidential Search Committee

Dear Faculty and Staff,

The Presidential Search Committee wants to involve a broad group of members of the Randolph community in articulating their hopes for the future of the College and the professional talents and personal qualities they believe Randolph’s 10th president should possess.

On Wednesday, August 15th, Search Consultant, Dr. Kate Haley will host open forums to gather input about the search for the College’s next President.

Faculty Open Forum 10:45 a.m. Martin 315
Staff Open Forum 1:00 p.m. Martin 315

In order to make this process as efficient as possible, you may want to be prepared to answer the following questions:

• What is special and unique about Randolph College?
• What are the top 5 agenda items for Randolph’s next president?
• What qualities, qualifications and experiences will make the next president successful?

Conversations will also occur with students, alumnae/i, and members of the Board of Trustees. Dr. Haley and the Committee welcome your participation and input. I hope that you will be able to attend. Thank you again to each of you for your assistance during this search.

Sincerely,

Tom Faulders, Chair
Presidential Search Committee

Dear Members of the Randolph College Community,

The Presidential Search Committee has been meeting over the past couple of months as the College begins the search for its 10th President. Today, I am pleased to share with you the next step in that important process.

After initially considering dozens of firms, the Committee reviewed six proposals and interviewed three finalists for the role of search consultant. I am happy to announce that Dr. Katherine Haley of Witt/Kieffer has been hired to serve as the consultant to the Presidential Search.

A well-regarded firm for higher education related searches, Witt/Kieffer has a strong track record of assisting liberal arts colleges in finding highly qualified individuals who also fit well within the institutions. Dr. Haley has conducted more than 20 searches for presidents, including many liberal arts colleges such as Cornell College, Millsaps College, Earlham College, and Hampshire College. Prior to her career at Witt/Kieffer, Dr. Haley served in a variety of roles in academe, including 20 years as a professor of Victorian literature, provost of Kenyon College, and president of both Whittier and Gettysburg Colleges. We believe that her experience and the resources of her firm will aid the College in finding truly outstanding candidates.

In the upcoming months, Dr. Haley will meet with various constituencies to gather input into the type of qualifications, experience, and attributes the College community feels it should seek in its next president. We will communicate details about how you can be involved as soon as they become available.

With thanks for your commitment and dedication to Randolph College,

Tom Faulders
Chair, Presidential Search Committee

Dear Members of the Randolph College Community,

I am pleased to share that the selection of the Presidential Search Committee for the College’s 10^th president is complete.  In forming this committee, Chair-elect Becky Morrison Dunn ’70, Vice-Chair Tom Faulders, and I sought a broadly representative group that reflects the diversity of perspectives at the College.  Thank you to the following individuals for agreeing to serve on the Committee:

• Tom Faulders, Vice-Chair, Board of Trustees & Chair of the Presidential Search Committee
• Terry Bodine, Assistant Dean of Students and Director of Residence Life
• Dr. William Coulter, Eichelbaum Professor of English
• Peter H. Dean, Board of Trustees
• Becky Morrison Dunn ’70, Chair-elect, Board of Trustees
• Dr. Jennifer Gauthier, Associate Professor of Communication
• Donald M. Giles, Board of Trustees
• Cathy Havener Greer ’73, Board of Trustees
• Jacob Hood ’14, Student Representative
• Elizabeth A. Maffey ’83, Board of Trustees
• Jan Meriwether, Vice President for Institutional Advancement
• Emily Rist ’14, Student Representative
• Dr. Gordon Steffey, Associate Professor of Religion
• Alison Keller Townsend ’75, Board of Trustees

Dr. Wes Fugate, Executive Assistant to the President and Secretary of the Board of Trustees, will serve as an ex-officio, non-voting member and staff to the Committee.

A presidential search is a significant undertaking for any institution, requiring the commitment of time and expertise of the Committee members as well as an investment of the College’s resources.  I want to thank the members of this Committee for their willingness to serve and for their continued commitment to Randolph College. 

The Committee’s primary responsibility is to find and vet candidates and make recommendations to the Board of Trustees.   In doing so, the Committee will hold open meetings with Randolph community members to hear qualifications and attributes they desire in the next President.  Tom Faulders, as chair of the Committee, will also provide regular updates to the community during the search process. 

On behalf of the Board of Trustees, I thank each of you for the assistance you will provide in the coming year as the College selects and names its 10^th president.

Sincerely,

Lucy W. Hooper ’73
Chair
Board of Trustees

Dear Randolph Community,

Randolph College has benefited from the leadership of President John E. Klein the past five years, and we look forward to the continued achievement and progress of the College as he finishes his presidency during the next academic year. Meanwhile, we must begin the process of finding the right person to serve as the College’s 10^th president. After consulting with chair-elect of the Board Becky Dunn ’70, we are pleased to announce that Tom Faulders, vice chair of the Randolph College Board of Trustees, has agreed to serve as the chair of the Presidential Search Committee.

Tom is an integral part of the Randolph College Board of Trustees leadership team. He began his service on the Board in 2004. Most recently, Tom served as the chair of the Strategic Planning Task Force, a committee that updated the College’s current strategic plan. Under Tom’s leadership, the strategic planning process was an inclusive one, and I know Tom will work to ensure that this search process is also inclusive of varying perspectives and constituencies. 

In the near future, we will announce the appointment of members of the Presidential Search Committee. The Committee will be composed of Trustees or Trustees Emeritae/i, faculty members, staff members, and students.

Choosing the next leader of Randolph College is a critical task, and I thank Tom for his willingness to lead the process. I look forward to sharing with you more news about the presidential search.

Sincerely,

Lucy W. Hooper ’73
Chair
Randolph College Board of Trustees