Search Committee

The Board of Governors has appointed the presidential search committee consisting of representatives from the Missouri State University community, including faculty, staff, alumni, students, and community leaders.

Board Members

  • Chris Waters, Board of Governors Chair 2023 / Board of Governors Past Chair 2024
  • Jeff Schrag, Board of Governors
  • Lynn Parman, Board of Governors Vice Chair 2023 / Board of Governors Chair 2024

Community / Alumni

Faculty/Academic Leadership

Administration

Staff

  • A’dja Jones, Assistant Director of Athletics for Inclusive Engagement and Student Services
  • Laura Derrick, Project Manager-Architect & Chair of Staff Senate

Students

West Plains

  • Crockett Oaks, Associate Vice-Chancellor for Business and Support Services – West Plains Campus

Presidential Search Committee Charge

Consistent with both state law, and the Bylaws of the Board of Governors, the Board of Governors (“Board”) is ultimately responsible for selecting, appointing, and setting the terms of employment for the President of Missouri State University. To assist the Board in fulfilling this responsibility, the Board has appointed a Presidential Search Committee, consistent with G1.23 Presidential Search Committee. 

The Presidential Search Committee is not a hiring committee; rather, the Board retains the ultimate authority and responsibility to select the next University President. The Committee’s role is to conduct a nationwide search, which includes recruiting, soliciting, reviewing, and vetting applicants for the Presidency to determine whether they have demonstrated the requisite experience, skills, and leadership attributes contemplated by the Missouri State University President position description. Additionally, candidate vetting should include consideration and evaluation of a candidate’s understanding and commitment to the University’s mission, vision, and values. 

The G1.23 Presidential Search Committee policy contemplates that the Committee will winnow the initial applicant pool to roughly 8-10 semi-finalist candidates, with each semi-finalist being offered the opportunity to interview with the Committee. These interviews should be rigorous and in-depth, as the Committee is charged with presenting a slate of approximately 3-4 finalist candidates to the Board for consideration and finalist interviews. Finalists are not to be ranked by the Committee. Reference checks (including both on- and off-list reference checks) must be completed by the Committee before a candidate may be presented to the Board for consideration as a finalist. The slate of finalists should be presented to the Board on or before January 26, 2024. 

Toward this end, it is critical that Presidential Search Committee members commit to reviewing all application materials submitted to the Committee and attending all meetings of the Committee (including interviews conducted by the Committee). 

Additionally, it is crucial that the entire search process conducted by the Presidential Search Committee remain strictly confidential – including after the search process has concluded. Confidentiality on the part of Presidential Search Committee members is of paramount importance, both to protect the privacy (and employment prospects) of applicants and to ensure confidence on the part of University and community members in the integrity of the search process and the resulting hire. 

The Board retains the right to remove any individual from the Presidential Search Committee who fails to maintain strict confidentiality or who otherwise fails to discharge their duties as a Committee member.