By early next year, the Board of Trustees is hoping to choose the next president of the University of Illinois, replacing current president Robert Easter who has helped steady the boat, which has been rocked by scandals within the last few years.  

During their meeting last week, the trustees approved the formation of a 19-member search committee that will oversee the presidential search process, one that we hope will be open to allow for reasonable faculty, staff and student input. 

Whether a presidential search is open varies among positions: The University-wide searches for former President Michael Hogan and current Chancellor Phyllis Wise were closed. However, campus officials disclosed the names of the three final candidates before Wise chose Provost Ilesanmi Adesida.

Candidates for the provost position were not only publicly announced, but members of the community were able to listen to his or her philosophies, as well as ask questions about the applicants’ accomplishments and leadership qualities.

At other institutions, these searches have been walled off. For example, at Ohio State University, the presidential search committee to replace Gordon Gee didn’t intend to disclose the names of the applicants. A University of Michigan committee conducted its search in a similar fashion.

But that doesn’t mean we should model their search processes, especially considering the rough stretch University presidents have been through this past decade. B. Joseph White was ousted following the Category I admissions scandal, and Michael Hogan shared a similar fate as he resigned amid controversy over admissions changes. 

Although an open search could potentially hurt the quality of the applicant pool (some might be hesitant to apply because of the prospects of not receiving an offer), an open search process is only responsible to the community who deserves to have a say in its next leader after not having a good track record over the last decade with the position, as incoming student trustee Lucas Frye pointed out in a Q-and-A session with The Daily Illini Editorial Board.

The longevity of this position, mixed in with the cost of presidencies cut short, adds to the importance of how Easter’s successor should be chosen.

The trustees took the first step: appointing a 19-member committee from all corners of the three campuses, including eight faculty members and three students. In addition, board chairman Christopher Kennedy said this search will lean more heavily on input than the one that ultimately hired Hogan.

We hope that holds true, as we’d like to see the next president possess qualities similar to Easter, including winning over support from the University community and working with state lawmakers in a critical time, but most importantly, understanding the University’s mission. 

Frye told us he’d like to see the University announce the top-three candidates, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. We agree, because we should be able to properly vet Easter’s successor. That way, our next leader will have little difficulty meeting the high standards Easter has set in his tenure as president.