Search for EOU’s next president begins

Dec. 13, 2022

Search for EOU’s next president begins

LA GRANDE, Ore. – The search for Eastern Oregon University’s next president took its next step last Thursday when the 22-member Presidential Search Committee held its first meeting. 

The committee, made up of students, faculty, staff, alumni and community members, is chaired by retired trustee and former board chair David Nelson. The group met with EOU’s Board of Trustees Chair Cheryl Martin and along with representatives from Summit Search Solutions, the consultants who will help guide the University through the process. 

“Summit’s wealth of experience and unique model stood out,” Martin said. “They have conducted over 30 searches in Oregon and have intentionally positioned themselves as a smaller, boutique firm. Their approach is to understand our needs and tell EOU’s story to help us attract the best candidates for president.”

At the meeting, Summit presented the committee with a timeline for the presidential search. In the first three weeks of January, Summit will visit with a broad range of university stakeholder groups and conduct an online survey to gather community feedback. Some of these meetings will be in person, while others will be by remote means. 

Summit will develop the draft leadership profile, which they will review with the search committee for input and then will present the profile to the board of trustees for review and final action. Summit will use the profile to promote the position to potential candidates. 

The goal is to have finalists visit campus in late spring. 

“We are approaching this search with collegiality, camaraderie and community,” Nelson said. “At our first meeting, we reviewed the work before us and committee members were able to ask questions. We are all working to create an environment of respect and openness that will help the committee engage in the hard work of finding candidates for EOU’s next leader.”

For updates and information on EOU’s presidential search, visit eou.edu/presidential-search.