Former University President Steven Leath’s resignation in June was a departure that continues to be cloudy in its rationale to this day. Now it’s up in the air whether his replacement, Jay Gogue, is “interim” president or a former president who happens to be “interim” — a talking point that has faculty scratching their heads.
An Auburn University Senate open forum was hosted on Dec. 3, to address Gogue’s status following a proposal raised at a Nov. 22, Board of Trustees meeting to drop the word “interim” from his title. Charles McCrary, chair of the trustees' executive committee, suggested the removal of the designation, which would lead to Gogue becoming both 18th and 20th president of the University.
According to an email by the University Senate Executive Committee, Gogue was “amenable” to the idea but wanted faculty support before the decision to revise the title was made. Approval from those in attendance at the forum was mixed, with many uncertain as to what the change would mean for determining a future president.
“We are positive about our communication with the Board of Trustees [and are] very optimistic we will perform a good search,” said Nedret Billor, who serves as chair of the University Senate.
Reasons behind the potential move came from Wayne Smith, president pro tempore of the Board of Trustees, and were outlined in a presentation shown to faculty. Among them were factors such as the hope that the position change would lead to “stronger communication with the Alabama legislature” as well as Gogue’s “wisdom and selfless service well documented as an advocate for the University community.”
Some fully backed the idea, such as employees of the School of Kinesiology, where a member at the forum stated a 22-0 vote saw the proposal favored. Another supportive group was the Auburn chapter of the American Association of University Professors.
“During Gogue’s previous tenure as University president, we believe that he served with the utmost professionalism,” a chapter member said, speaking on the association's behalf. “The president of the Auburn chapter of AAUP overwhelmingly supports the proposal.”
Nevertheless, other faculty senators expressed aversion to the concept. Michael Fogle, an associate professor in physics who represents the department, believes the idea is unwise despite some of the justifications given.
“If you take a poll in here, probably very few people know who signed their diploma,” he said, arguing against one motive that declared students wouldn’t want an “interim” president signing theirs. “I don’t believe this is in the best interest of the University given our strategic plan.”
Some questioned the nature of the idea — “Is this standard procedure?” “Does taking ‘interim’ out change how long Gogue will be with us?” They received answers of “no.” Per Conner Bailey, alumni professor of rural sociology, McCrary provided Gogue both five-year and three-year contract offers to be president, which he rejected in favor of a new hire in that time.
Other members of the senate and forum expressed curiosity at the circumstances surrounding Gogue’s place as president. Michael Baginski, associate professor of electrical and computer engineering and immediate past chair of the University Senate, asked that the Board specify how long Gogue’s contract as interim president will last in its next meeting.
“I don’t know one person who didn’t welcome [Gogue] with open arms,” Baginski said, who was not as opposed to the designation proposal. “He was sort of the great peacemaker.”
A few senators brought forth opinions about periods when a new president might be hired, such as Karley Riffe, assistant professor in the College of Education, who suggested fall 2022 to fall 2023. Some weren’t as lenient, like James Hanson, professor and chair of the physics department.
“The Board needs to recognize that we need to move forward,” Hanson said to participants in the forum. “It’s time to move on; the Board should make plans to hire a new president by fall 2020.”
The search for a new president would be at least a 12-month process, and as such, the Board of Trustees intends to conduct a “full and open presidential search with 12-months’ notice to the University community,” Billor said.
Input from the faculty and other stakeholders of the University will be passed on to the Board of Trustees to be discussed at its Feb. 7, 2020 meeting, according to the email promoting the forum.
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