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Board announces open forums, selection of presidential search firm

COLUMBIA, Mo. – The University of ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ Board of Curators today announced the appointment of Cheryl D.S. Walker and James H. Whitaker as co-chairs of the UM System presidential search committee. Walker earned a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ University of Science and Technology in 1986. Whitaker earned a bachelor’s degree and medical doctorate from the University of ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥-Columbia in 1967 and 1971, respectively. As co-chairs, Walker and Whitaker will lead the presidential search committee, which includes all members of the UM Board of Curators, the Student Representative to the Board, and four at-large members representing faculty, staff and students from across the university.

“We are grateful to both Cheryl Walker and Jim Whitaker for agreeing to serve as co-chairs of the search committee,” Pamela Henrickson, chair of the UM Board of Curators, said. “They bring a diverse experience and valuable perspective to the committee and I look forward to working with them as we engage in this critical search process for the next president of UM System.”

In addition, the board selected Isaacson, Miller to serve as the executive search firm that will guide the execution of the presidential search and work closely with the committee to ensure a successful search process.

A series of open forums will be held the first week of April on each of the four UM System campuses to give the university community an opportunity to provide input on the proposed characteristics and desired qualifications sought in the next president. The search committee and Isaacson, Miller will use this input to develop a qualifications statement for use in recruiting and selecting candidates.

The forums are open to the public and will be livestreamed via the Web. No registration is required. The forums are scheduled as follows:

• April 4: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., Havener Student Center, Rooms 204 A&B, ÃÛÌÇÖ±²¥ S&T
• April 4: 3:30 p.m.-5 p.m., Millennium Student Center, Century Room, UMSL
• April 6: 10:30 a.m.-12 p.m., Reynolds Alumni Center, Great Room, MU
• April 8: 12 p.m.-1:30 p.m., Student Union, Room 401BC, UMKC

Additional information on the presidential search committee, as well as information on the open forums, is available online at https://umsystem.edu/ps.                                                                                    

Media Resources

Cheryl D.S. Walker photo: /media/fa/images/Highres_Walker_Cheryl.jpg.
James H. Whitaker photo: /media/fa/images/Highres_Whitaker_James.jpg.

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