The race for the helm of the University of Minnesota system has been narrowed down to three contenders, the institution's Board of Regents announced recently, and the trio of academia's best is prepped to prove their mettle in a head-to-head for the coveted top post. In a move critical for the University's future, Laura Bloomberg, Rebecca Cunningham, and James Holloway were singled out from a competitive field, heralding a new chapter in the storied history of the Minnesota educational juggernaut, the University of Minnesota reported.
Janie Mayeron, Chair of the University’s Board of Regents, praised the high caliber of finalists, highlighting the uniquely arduous task of selecting the University’s 18th President, "Selecting the next president is one of the Board's most important responsibilities, reaching this significant step was only possible thanks to the commitment and hard work, hundreds of University community members and beyond have shared their perspectives so far." The finalists are set to embark on a week-long quest starting February 12, engaging in open forums across the University's five campuses - a chance for the University's denizens to size up the potentials and weigh in on who should take the reins.
Bloomberg, Cunningham, and Holloway emerged from a pool of 46 candidates, vetted by a 24-member Presidential Search Advisory Committee, that made a unanimous decision after confidential interviews with 12 contenders. The Board discussed the candidates before naming the finalists under the cloak of Minnesota's privacy laws, which protect candidates' identities until a definitive Board action shines the public light upon them, the finalists' dossiers and application materials are laid bare on the Board’s Presidential Search website for all to scrutinize.
Following their campus tours and the public's inquisition, the Board will convene on February 26 in a special meeting to put the candidates through their public paces and anoint the next president-designate, this meeting is to be publicly noticed in due course. Serving pivotal roles in other esteemed institutions, the candidates' credentials are undeniably impressive - Bloomberg currently leads Cleveland State University, Cunningham spearheads research and innovation at the University of Michigan, and Holloway shapes academics as the University of New Mexico's provost and executive vice president.
Apart from the presidential search saga, the Board kept busy with various matters of import; among them, they signed off on a resolution related to a Letter of Intent with Fairview Health Services, took stock of completed external audit work, pondered the Governor’s Task Force on Academic Health findings, received updates on accreditation status for Rochester and Twin Cities campuses, amended the supplemental fiscal 2025 State budget request in support of the academic health system, combed through a policy on Reservation and Delegation of Authority, and put a stamp of approval on the University performance and accountability report. The Board will next rendezvous on March 7-8, 2024, where presumably, the post-presidential search landscape will unfurl in new hues.
