A national search for the next University of Colorado president yielded only one name, that of interim president Hank Brown, the search committee said Wednesday.
The search didn’t net anyone who trumps the former U.S. senator who has received nothing but praise from CU regents since he stepped in as interim president last summer.
The 12-member committee, made up of faculty, administrators and a student, could have nominated up to three finalists.
Instead, eight committee members voted “yes” on Brown; two voted “no” and two abstained. The four who voted “no” or abstained said the process was not thorough enough and that they wanted to bring more candidates forward to interview and propose as finalists.
Brown, 66, who took over last summer after Betsy Hoffman resigned, has kept fairly quiet about his desire for the permanent job, discreetly excusing himself when regents discussed the presidential search and saying only when pressed that he would stay if regents asked him. He didn’t throw his own name into consideration.
Brown did not attend Wednesday night’s board meeting, but he talked to reporters in a teleconference afterward.
CU officials worried as the applications began arriving in late December that Brown’s popularity and praise by regents would deter qualified candidates from applying.
CU advertised the job in the country’s largest newspapers and academic publications with the help of a search firm.
The finalists or finalist will meet administrators, professors, students and the public on each of CU’s campuses during the next few weeks, regent and search committee chair Steve Bosley said before the vote was announced.
Regents are likely to decide on the new president within a month or two, he said.
The search committee has met almost weekly since September. Regents budgeted $300,000 for the search.
Staff writer Jennifer Brown can be reached at 303-820-1593 or jenbrown@denverpost.com.
