By SUSAN JONES
Following an aggressive timeline, the provost search committee heard from members of the Pitt community in four forums over the past seven days about what they want to see in the next academic leader of the University and what that person’s priorities should be.
In a message Oct. 24, Chancellor Joan Gabel announced that the 25-member committee had been formed, led by Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for health sciences. The group includes administrators, Board of Trustees members, faculty, staff and students.
The online forums on Oct. 27, 31 and Nov. 2 and 3 allowed the committee to hear from different stakeholders at the University. Thoughts on the next provost also can be shared through a community survey. Anyone who would like to nominate a potential candidate for the job can do that through the survey or by contacting the search firm Pitt has hired, Korn Ferry, at PittProvost@kornferry.com. Find more information at provostsearch.pitt.edu.
Shekhar said at the forums that the committee hopes to define what it wants to look for in a new provost by the end of November and then go out to market by the end of the year. Gabel has said previously that she hopes to announce a new provost by the end of the spring semester.
“We want to get the best person; we want to get the most visionary leader for this,” Shekhar said. “While there is a strong need to conclude this search at the earliest possible time, we also don’t want to just rush through it and get whoever we can get.”
Fritz Pil, professor of business administration and a search committee member, said this position is “a tremendous opportunity to take an institution that is thriving, and really look forward.”
Pil said he’d like to see a “true academic leader who really likes to think about complex problems, integrative problems, opportunities to build bridges between disciplines, to connect through to the community. This is an amazing place. And so I hope that we can communicate that well, because it’s not just identifying but also really recruiting someone amazing. I think we’re well-positioned to do that.”
Former Provost Ann Cudd announced in March that she was leaving Pitt to become president of Portland State University in Oregon. Joe McCarthy took over as interim provost in July. The start of a search for a new provost was delayed slightly, since Pitt also was in the middle of a chancellor transition that brought Gabel to the job in July.
At the second forum, Kit Ayars, director of the Center for Creativity, asked if there was enough time for the committee to hear feedback this week and immediately start to form a job description.
“The unique thing that we’re trying to capture is what, at this point, Pitt needs, and what would be great for Pitt to have for the next decade,” Shekhar said, noting that they’re not trying to redefine what a provost is.
“It’s such an exciting time and I think especially with the new chancellor on board, I would like to think that the candidates see this as a real opportunity to come in at a time of great change,” said Megan Miller, a staff member in the Health Sciences, “which I think is appealing to people, as opposed to trying to mold themselves to some very well-established routines and paradigms.”
The first two forums were open to everyone in the Pitt community, while the last two were for faculty and staff, respectively. In total, about 100 people participated in the forums, in addition to the committee members who listened in.
Diversity
Diversity, equity and inclusion issues were a recurring theme. This included diversity of faculty, staff and students, as well as curriculum.
Jim Griffin, the inaugural director of equity and community engagement in the Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences, said he would like the new provost to value diversity of courses available in the liberal arts and to take a look at how we select students.
“I think we have so many students who see themselves as future doctors or scientists … and in the quantitative fields. How do we develop that value for diversity with this provost, … instead of just worrying about how many labs to build, rather than maybe working on a new music building, which is literally falling over?” he said.
Shekhar said this question goes to the heart of the provost position — Whether a university education is “just an entry level sort of work to get into a professional trade or is this really creating future citizens that are enlightened and have a broader perspective, irrespective of what profession they choose? … I certainly believe in the latter as the purpose of the universities, so we have to absolutely have a provost who also sees this issue of what a university education means, especially at the undergrad level.”
Robin Kear, University Senate president, a liaison librarian and a member of the search committee, said she wants to make sure a new provost will understand and champion the general education reform project started by interim Provost Joe McCarthy. The changes being worked on, she said, will help students “find what they love and and understand why they’re dabbling in all kinds of different things to be better citizens, as Dr. Shekhar said, and to be better people.”
Another diversity issue the new provost will face is understanding the Supreme Court ruling this summer on race-based admissions, and “really putting in practices to make sure the integrity of our diversity does not get lost within the new law,” said Yvette Moore, a staff member in the Swanson School of Engineering. “I think we have to look at diversity as a major thread throughout the fabric of the University, not just one asset to the University, but something that flows through it.”
Staff member Kelly Tatone, of the School of Education, said Pitt needs to diversify the student body more and pull in more local Pittsburgh students “or make some sort of pathway that is easy to navigate for our local students.”
Staff issues
The staff-focused forum had the largest attendance (around 40 people) and the greatest number of people participating in the discussion. Staff also were present in the open forums.
“I would like to see a provost who integrates more openly the support and the opinion of the staff who are always behind the scenes in every academic endeavor,” said Adriana Maguina-Ugarte, in the Department of Anthropology.
Jim Griffin pointed out that the number of staff has not kept up with the increasing number of faculty and students. “We need to change the compensation contract, the social contract really, we have with our employees,” he said, noting that the education and retirement benefits are great but don’t appeal to all employees.
Lindsay Rodzwicz, Staff Council president, a Swanson School staff member and a search committee member, said a new provost needs to look at how faculty who are supervisors are trained, noting that managing staff is different than managing researchers.
“I just think staff need more recognition and more support and probably higher pay,” said Jessica Thomas, personnel manager in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences. “Even with comp modernization, I still don’t think it’s good enough, because we still have high turnover in a lot of areas and so we need to focus on retaining the good people that work here.”
Shekhar noted this was something that all senior leaders, including a new provost, need to consider.
Thomas also stressed that the support for faculty and staff development programs needs to come from the top down, because many supervisors are not allowing their staff to participate. And she said that the next provost needs to be a little bit more involved with staff and students, “and not from a desk in the Cathedral.”
“I’d like to see more open and transparent communication from the Office of the Provost,” said Janae Gans, a staff member in Pitt Business. She said there often are staff, leadership or policy changes coming from the provost’s office, “and sometimes they’re not disseminated to all the staff working in those respective areas that may need to be aware of those type of changes.”
Finally, Yetunde Olaore, a staff member in the Swanson School, said, “We’d really appreciate a provost who is concerned about the wellbeing and welfare of staff members. So many of us are overwhelmed right now. My colleague left almost three years ago and the position is still not filled. … We want to do all these great things in the school, but it takes staff members to also help to accomplish these goals.”
Faculty concerns
Faculty had some of the same concerns as staff, and some more specific.
Anne Robertson, in the Swanson School, said Pitt needs a provost who’s looking outward, to figure out strategies where the University can leverage its expertise to address global issues, such as the environment, artificial intelligence and conflicts throughout the world. “We need a provost who’s really looking at those pressing problems, and figuring out a way that the University of Pittsburgh can contribute effectively.”
Frank Wilson, assistant vice president for academic affairs at Pitt–Greensburg and former Senate president, said, “I obviously endorse the importance of shared governance especially as it’s changing at this point. And it should not be surprising I’m advocating for undergraduate education and especially the kind that we do at the regional campuses. I’ve watched in the previous few provosts, who have taken steps that make us feel like we’re an important asset to the University, and I hope we pick up someone who takes it to the next level and recognizes that this is a time especially for collaborative work.”
Wilson also hopes a new provost has experience dealing with lawmakers and is able to fight off the constant funding battles with the state, so that “we’re still a public university.”
Faculty also want the new provost to be an advocate for academic freedom and freedom of speech. Barry Gitnick, professor of business administration, said this includes “the ability of the faculty as scholars to work on the important issues as they see them.” He said universities often look outside for measurements and rankings and then to try to get faculty to match those measures, which are often wrong. “If you go up a couple notches, it’s not going to make you better off. All it does is it makes people inside the university terribly unhappy and restricted.”
Attributes for a new provost
There were several suggestions for skills to look for in a new provost, including someone who is tech savvy, committed to community engagement and to shared governance, and able to continue to accelerate the University-wide focus on sustainability.
David Brown, vice chancellor for government relations and advocacy, said the next provost needs to be comfortable navigating the challenging political waters higher education faces and engaging and representing the University on those topics.
The provost should be a strong academic, said Lori Molinaro, staff director for the University Senate. While the chancellor doesn’t have to be an academic, she said the provost should be a strong scholar and leader. The new provost also should have experience dealing with faculty and staff unions.
Experience with and appreciation for the regional campuses was an attribute reiterated by several people, faculty and staff. Kearsten Adams from Pitt–Greensburg said it would be great if the provost could visit more than once a year. Brandon Rager from Pitt–Johnstown said the new provost should be “committed to the regional student experience and also what the regional campuses serve to our local communities.”
Pitt needs someone who is forward thinking and has a strong sense of community, said Doris Rubio, assistant vice chancellor for clinical research education and training, Health Sciences, and a search committee member. The urban campus can make Pitt decentralized and some students get lost. “COVID has taught us many things. The online world is here to stay, and we need to figure out how to build that sense of community. So that students have that commitment and that passion to stay at Pitt and be engaged beyond … just attending a basketball game or a football game.”
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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