Presidential Update

The search for the 13th president of Baylor University will continue with at least one less name in the applicant pool -- that of Interim President William D. Underwood.
Regents Chair Will Davis announced Sept. 9 after the regents' executive meeting that the board did not vote on a permanent president and that Underwood, appointed interim April 29, had withdrawn his name for further consideration for the long-term position.
"At the search committee's recommendation to the board, its work will continue," Davis said, adding that no timetable had been set. "We have candidates, and we will continue to look at them." He also said Baylor had the "best vacancy" available in the nation. "We'll be able to get a candidate who will coalesce with all of the Baylor family," he said.
Local media had reported that the search committee would present the names of two candidates to the board for consideration -- Underwood and former associate dean of Hankamer School of Business, Linda Livingstone. Davis would not comment on whether Livingstone had been considered for the position.
Livingstone, dean of the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University, had been the associate dean for graduate programs at Hankamer until she left Baylor in 2002.
Underwood said he informed the search committee on Sept. 8 that he wanted to withdraw his name as an applicant. "I never wanted to be president, it's not a position I have ever coveted," he said. "I did not think that was the smart thing for Baylor.
"I also believe that because of some of the controversial decisions I made at the very outset of my term as interim, that my being a candidate for the permanent job would be unnecessarily divisive," he said.
One of Underwood's first moves as interim was to relieve David Lyle Jeffrey, provost and chief academic officer, of that position. Jeffrey, who engendered controversy among faculty members about academic freedom issues, remains at Baylor as Distinguished Professor of Literature and Humanities. Underwood appointed J. Randall O'Brien, former chair of the religion department, as interim provost and vice president for academic affairs.
Underwood also said that his being considered for the permanent position has impaired his ability to get things accomplished as interim. "There are some things I needed to get done as interim, and my being considered for the permanent position has caused people to question some of my motives," he said. "Every time you do something, people wonder if you're doing it to further your own interests or whether you're doing it to further the interests of the University. I wanted it very clear that everything I was doing was in the best interests of Baylor," he said.
Underwood cited the University's efforts to set priorities related to Baylor 2012 as one of the objectives he is focused on as interim.
The regents established the presidential search committee Feb. 4, charging Davis with appointing regent committee members in consultation with board Vice-Chair Jim Turner. Members of the 11-person committee were announced Feb. 22, naming regent and Amarillo attorney W.H. Brian Jr. as chair. At the same time, Davis announced the appointment of an advisory search committee including faculty, alumni, staff, students and other Baylor constituents. It is chaired by Baylor alumnus and former U.S. Ambassador to Sweden Lyndon Olson Jr.
In the intervening seven months, the two committees have solicited comments from across the Baylor communities, conducted several listening meetings, and, during the summer, met with leading candidates for personal interviews. 
Davis said Underwood would continue as interim president. "I am very appreciative of the job Professor Underwood has done. He has my complete confidence," he said.
The Board of Regents meets again Oct. 27-28 during Homecoming weekend.