From: Patti Kunkle <patricia.kunkle@gallaudet.edu>
To: Patricia.Kunkle@Gallaudet.edu
Subject: Message from Celia May Baldwin, Board of Trustees
Date: Fri, 5 May 2006 12:52:08 -0400
May 5, 2006

To Members of the Gallaudet Community,

I am deeply concerned that the perception of many of you is that the
search process that led to the appointment of Dr. Jane Fernandes as
Gallaudet’s ninth president was flawed and did not support diversity
and social justice.  While I respect the right to disagree with a
decision of the Board of Trustees and value open discussion and debate,
I also believe it is essential that such discussions are grounded in
facts, not misinformation and innuendo.

From the outset, the Board promoted an open, inclusive, and fair
process.  The campus community constituencies were deeply involved in
identifying students, faculty, and staff to serve on the Presidential
Search Committee (PSC).  The Board wanted a search committee that was
diverse and that was achieved.  In the interest of assuring broad
representation on the search committee, approximately 2/3 were non-board
members.  This was in marked contrast to presidential searches
conducted by many other universities where it is common practice for a
majority to be board members.

Proposals were solicited from search consultants and representatives
from those submitting proposals were interviewed.  The PSC selected
Academic Search Consultation Services, a firm that specializes in
searches for university presidents and other chief academic officers. 
Dr. Tobie van der Vorm and Dr. Tom Gerety of academic search met with
campus constituencies to identify characteristics desired in the
president and participated in most the meetings of the PSC.  They
helped ensure that best practices in presidential searches, including
inclusiveness of diversity and freedom from bias, were followed.
With respect to diversity and social justice, of the six semi-finalists
all were deaf and three were either women or people of color.  As is
typical of searches, the size of the pool of qualified candidates was
substantial and the PSC had to consider which within the pool had
qualifications that most closely matched those required to carry out the
advertised presidential agenda.  Six were selected after careful review
of the application materials within the context of the desired
presidential qualifications/attributes for carrying out the presidential
agenda.  Lengthy reference checks were done on each of the six using
the same questions for each reference.  The PSC interviewed each of the
six candidates using identical questions that were designed to give each
candidate the opportunity to describe how he/she would lead Gallaudet
into the future.

The three finalists were chosen after lengthy analysis and discussion of
the interviews and review again of the application materials,
references, and qualifications/attributes for carrying out the
presidential agenda.  As you know, the three finalists were brought to
campus for two days during which they met with numerous constituencies
on campus (students, faculty, staff, teachers and administrators) and
gave presentations, followed by questions and answers during an open
forum.  Feedback forms requesting the strengths and weaknesses of each
candidate were distributed at each event. 

The PSC carefully reviewed, analyzed, and categorized all feedback
received on the forms, via e-mails, letters, and polls.  All this
information was summarized and shared during a meeting with the full
Board of Trustees.  The Board also watched the campus presentations as
well as the Q and A on DVD, interviewed each of the finalists, and
reviewed all of the feedback material that was categorized in binders
for each candidate according to student, faculty, staff, administrator,
alumni, and unknown.   The Board also had all the applications
materials and a report of all the reference information. The Board used
all of this in information in the deliberations that led to the
selection of Dr. Jane Fernandes as Gallaudet University’s ninth
president.

I provide this amount of detail so that you will have a fuller
understanding of why the Board is confident that all aspects of the
search process were conducted with fairness and supported diversity and
social justice.  Thus, the Board finds no basis for re-opening the
search and stands firm in our selection of Dr. Fernandes as the best
person to lead Gallaudet University beginning January 2007.
The community participated actively in all aspects of this search and
all perspectives were assessed carefully.  I remind you that this was a
process that weighed very carefully the numerous qualifications and
expectations for the new president and was not a popular election.  I
request that those of you who disagree with the decision recognize that
the Board has the ultimate authority to appoint the president.  Having
overseen a fair, open, transparent and just process the Board cannot and
will not reverse ourselves in the face of a protest that we do not
consider to be justified.

Sincerely,
Celia May Baldwin, Interim Chair
Board of Trustees