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Metro’s Board of Trustees has chosen to hire an independent
consultant to assist in the presidential search rather than consigning
the search to a corporate search firm.
“The board wanted someone who has real knowledge of higher
education,” board chairman Bruce Benson said. “John Buechner
has great knowledge and great connections. He knows the campus and
he knows Colorado.”
At last Wednesday’s meeting, the board voted unanimously to
appoint University of Colorado President Emeritus John Buechner to
assist in the search.
While the trustees had intended to hire a firm to conduct the search,
none of the firms the board interviewed satisfied their criteria,
interim president Ray Kieft said.
The search for the new president of the college has been going on
since June 13 when former president Sheila Kaplan announced she would
be resigning from her position of 10 years.
Kaplan formally resigned July 1.
Ray Kieft was appointed interim president June 24; his appointment
is scheduled to last one fiscal year until June 2004.
Another factor in the trustees’ decision was the amount of
money that will be saved, Benson said.
Buechner’s $15,000 fee for assisting in the search is much
lower than the $50,000 price tag of a search firm.
According to Benson, there are no plans for the leftover funds at
the moment.
“The more money we save, the better off we’ll be,”
Benson said. “You need reserves to operate a college.”
At the trustees’ September meeting, the board heard proposals
from two firms: Phoenix-based Academic Search, and Denver-based Phillips
International.
“The [board] felt neither proposal demonstrated the qualities a search firm would need to
lead a national Presidential search, so another avenue was explored,”
Kieft said.
Since the September meeting, Kieft met with a few other individuals
who were interested in the position.
Kieft agreed to keep these names confidential unless they were made
finalists, of which Buechner was the only one.
Kieft noted that Buechner has 30 years experience in higher education
and has conducted over 30 searches.
Buechner is also a former chancellor at the University of Colorado
at Denver.
According to Kieft, Buechner will give the search a unique approach
that could not have been achieved had a corporate firm been hired.
Benson added that he knows Buechner on a personal level, as the two
have been acquainted for over 20 years.
Student Trustee Harris Singer said hiring Buechner is the best move
for the college financially.
“What impressed me was his experience as chancellor at a commuter
college,” Singer said. “He knows our needs, issues and
desires.”
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