Over winter break, the BFA Executive Committee drafted and approved a statement noting attributes that committee members feel are critical and should guide the selection of the next campus Chancellor:
ATTRIBUTES THAT SHOULD GUIDE THE SELECTION
OF THE NEXT CU BOULDER CHANCELLOR
The Executive Committee of the Boulder Faculty Assembly (BFA) expects the next chancellor of CU Boulder to be appointed from among multiple named finalists chosen by the search committee, all of whom have been vetted through campus meetings with interested faculty, staff, students, and members of the public, whose feedback on the candidates should guide the ultimate appointment.
Drawing on broad discussions and experience over recent years regarding the future of the Boulder Campus, the BFA Executive Committee supports the selection of a Chancellor who:
- Supports and has common bonds with the faculty, who, through their inquiry, teaching, and service, express core academic values and function as the engine driving the university. CU Boulder’s chancellor should be a career academic with a national or international reputation for their research or creative work. Such a chancellor will understand the faculty’s commitment to academic values and inspire them to greater scholarly and creative achievements.
- Endorses and respects the outcomes of a robust system of shared faculty governance. CU Boulder’s chancellor shall be committed to:
- a robust system of shared faculty governance at all administration levels.
- proactively creating opportunities for and ensuring the consistent and substantive involvement of faculty in establishing academic policy and making decisions that affect CU Boulder and the university system.
- transparency and effective communication and collaboration with faculty and other stakeholders, both in and beyond the university community.
- being an effective communicator and an engaged listener. A chancellor should bring the diverse campus community members together through their ability to tap into and leverage the collective and diverse ideas, talents, and experiences that make up the Boulder campus.
- Supports and acts on their commitment to inclusive excellence as a core value that undergirds all that we do. We seek a chancellor who is committed to supporting and expanding campus initiatives for faculty, staff, and students on diversity, equity, and inclusion.
- Is an advocate for CU Boulder as a top ten center for excellence in climate crisis action. This includes a commitment to:
- accelerating the move towards renewable energy use for all campus operations in line with limiting global warming to 1.5°C.
- enhancing and improving CU Boulder’s reputation as a top-ten climate change research and education institution.
- Values the principles of a comprehensive research university locally, nationally, and globally. The CU Boulder chancellor should take an active, public-facing role in:
- communicating both the value to our civil society of a broad-based education and the contributions that CU-Boulder makes to Colorado and the world.
- recognizing and promoting the importance of global engagement, including research collaborations, student and faculty teaching and research exchanges, and a thoughtful and deliberate CU presence on the international stage.
Approved by the Executive Committee on January 12, 2024