On April 5, 2017, Glenn D. Mroz announced that he would be returning to faculty after his thirteen-year presidency at Michigan Technological University. The nostalgia was witnessed during his final comments to the Fall 2017 graduates at MTU. The Board of Trustees at MTU launched a search for a new president, who would carry on President Mroz’s energy with equally remarkable momentum.
The Presidential Search Committee is aimed at finding an innovator with dynamic leadership experience, capable of advancing an entrepreneurial vision in STEM fields at a leading public research university. It was formed on June 2, 2017 and appointed 14 members within the school along with an executive search firm called Storebeck Pimentel and Associates.
This firm was ranked 18th by Forbes in the world’s best-recruiting firms. Julia Tea, Steve Leo (partners) and Brian Bustin (associate) from Storbeck Pimentel visited campus mid-September to learn about what qualities the community is looking for in their president. They have also conducted Town Hall meetings in Grand Rapids and Ann Arbor with alumni and friends of our university. Michigan Tech also welcomes and solicits all members of the community to participate in the search. They can reach out to the members of Storbeck Pimentel through MichiganTech2017@storbecksearch.com. Emails were sent to students, faculty, staff, alumni and parents updating them on the progress made by the search committee. The search committee is making progress and expects to have made a decision by April 2018.
The mid-September meetings were the first set of Town Hall meetings, and they were held at the Memorial Union Building at Michigan Tech. They discussed the future of the university and the expectations of the community. The consultants at the Town Hall meetings also enjoyed a tour of the campus on golf carts to better understand how the Michigan Tech community indulges on campus.
On October 19, Terry Woychowski, the chair of the Board of Trustees at Tech, joined the PSC to share his thoughts on the search and appreciate the efforts being made by the committee. The very next day, the Board of Trustees met with a group of twenty-five students to seek their input on what attributes they desired in the new president.
Michigan Tech made it clear to everyone that their feedback was valued, and that every opinion would be considered seriously to aid in choosing the new president. The PSC made inquiries at similar colleges and universities across the United States for nominations. Many engineering, science and technology-related publications, such as “The Chronicle of Higher Education,” “Inside Higher Ed,” etc.
The consultants, along with the University marketing team, developed a website to provide updates and important information to the Tech community. It also contains a confidential survey which has currently generated 550 responses.
January 22 witnessed a progress update from the search consultants, and a review process for the first round of interviews. Another meeting to plan for the next phases of the search process was held on January 30. The PSC is dedicated to maintaining the confidentiality of the candidates, in order to attract and retain the most qualified candidate pool possible. They are near the interview phase, and will eventually select a new president by the summer of 2018.
