I am pleased to announce the members of the Presidential Search Committee. These 17 individuals received their charge from SUNY Chancellor John B. King Jr. and are ready to begin the important work of helping the chancellor and SUNY Board of Trustees select our next president.
The SUNY Guide to Presidential Searches at State-Operated Institutions (PDF) provides a specific structure for the search committee, namely four members of the university council (including the chair); six members of the full-time teaching faculty of the campus; one student; one alumni representative; one campus-related foundation representative; one academic dean; one professional or support staff member; one incumbent or retired SUNY president from another campus or a member of the chancellor’s senior staff designated by the chancellor; and the chancellor’s liaison representative (non-voting). After the campus nominating process, the following members were named to the search committee:
- Linda Dobmeier, University Council Chair
- Pete Grum, University Council
- Mo Sumbundu, University Council
- Gary Siddall, University Council
- Ricky Fleming, Faculty (SAS); Chair and Professor, Music
- Lisa Marie Anselmi, Faculty (SAS); Chair and Associate Professor, Anthropology (Senator)
- Erin Barr, Faculty (SAS); Assistant Professor, History and Social Studies Education
- Gehan Senthinathan, Faculty (SEP); Assistant Professor, Social and Psychological Foundations (Senator)
- Lorena Mathien, Faculty (SEP); Professor and Former Chair, Business, Economics, and Public Administration
- Hermen Diaz III, Faculty (SEP); Associate Professor, Higher Education Administration (Senator)
- Jayson Williams, Student Representative
- Stacy Lewis Beauford, Alumni Board Representative
- Judy Elliott, Foundation Board Representative
- Kelly Frothingham, Academic Dean (SAS)
- Christopher Weber, Professional Staff Representative
- Timothy Sams, Chancellor's Representative, SUNY Old Westbury President
- Adiam Tsegai, Community Representative, SUNY Erie President
- Zulaika Rodriguez, Chancellor's Representative (non-voting)
- William Benfanti, Buffalo State (non-voting)
First, I want to thank all individuals who stepped forward to advance their names to serve on the committee. This process cannot succeed without your hard work and dedication.
Second, now that the committee has been seated and received their charge from Chancellor King, I want to thank each committee member for their service. While our work has just begun, it is already quite evident how deeply each of these individuals cares about Buffalo State and the people who make this university such a wonderful place to study, work and call home. I am confident they will be thoughtful, enthusiastic representatives of their constituent groups, driven by the shared goal of identifying the best leader to serve as Buffalo State’s 10th president.
As was mentioned in the last Buffalo State Senate meeting, SUNY has elected to use a representational model for this search. In a representational model, expanded groups of individuals, representing key university constituencies, meet with the semifinalists in lieu of an open forum during on-campus interviews. These individuals are required to sign non-disclosure agreements and are invited to provide their feedback to the search committee following candidate visits, ensuring that their voices and the voices of the constituent groups they represent are heard.
Nationally, the representational search model is becoming increasingly adopted as a balanced, inclusive approach to presidential selection. This model offers a key advantage to Buffalo State in its search process. In today’s higher education landscape, many sitting senior university leaders are reluctant to publicly disclose their candidacies. Since only three semifinalists are recommended to SUNY as finalists and only one candidate is selected to become Buffalo State’s next president, the others will likely remain at their current institutions. Public exposure could force them to explain their candidacy to donors, faculty, staff, policymakers, students and their broader university community—potentially affecting their ability to lead effectively and putting their current positions at risk. Given this reality, a process in which candidates' names are made public would likely diminish the number of qualified leaders in the applicant pool.
By using a representational model, we will have the benefit of significant campus input (faculty, staff, students and other key stakeholders) while still mitigating the candidates’ risk of exposure, thus increasing the strength of the applicant pool. This approach will allow us to attract outstanding leaders while maintaining a process that is inclusive, transparent and reflective of our campus community’s voice. I am committed to ensuring that representatives from a broad cross-section of college constituencies can meet with our semifinalists.
You may visit the Presidential Search webpage for an overview of the timeline and the latest information on the search. Lastly, I invite you to suggest potential candidates to WittKieffer, our presidential search firm, at BuffaloStatePresident@wittkieffer.com.
Sincerely,
Linda A. Dobmeier, ’71
Chair, Buffalo State University Council