A group of Mississippi University for Women alumni and Columbus residents is asking the state’s college board to consider a prominent alumna as the institution’s next president. They’re also pressing trustees to disclose a timeline and details about how the board will conduct the leadership search.
Doris Taylor Credit: Chris JenkinsDoris Taylor, a biotechnology researcher and scientist who graduated from the W in 1977, is the top pick for the Citizens Coalition for MUW and Mississippi School for Mathematics and Sciences.
The W is at a defining moment that “demands a leader of national standing who is also a daughter of this institution,” the coalition wrote in a letter to the college board.
That leader would be able to walk the halls of the National Institutes of Health or engage the state Legislature at the Capitol with equal authority, the coalition wrote.
MUW’s next president, the group said, should be someone “who can mobilize philanthropic capital this university has never been able to access, and who will fight for the W with the conviction that comes from having been shaped by it.”
Taylor has had distinguished faculty leadership roles at Duke University and the University of Minnesota, the coalition noted in its letter to the college board. The group also said she is a dedicated MUW foundation board of trustee director, donor and proud alumna whose knowledge of the institution and region could benefit the institution.
Taylor, founder and CEO of Organamet Bio Inc., said the coalition’s endorsement is an honor. She had expressed interest in the top job in 2018, but the appointment went to Nora Miller.
Taylor said she wants to give back to the university that shaped her career. She also said she wants to encourage other candidates who are interested in the role to apply. The more candidates vying for the role, the better options the state Institutions of Higher Learning board of trustees will have to select a strong leader, Taylor said.
“MUW deserves a president that can protect it, fund it and build it,” Taylor said. “And, whoever takes on the role, it’s a critically important opportunity to eliminate those issues that have put an excessive burden on the campus and our community.”
The MUW president search has not yet started
Credit: Gil Ford PhotographyAt listening sessions IHL held in April, some speakers named Sally Burchfield Doty, director of Broadband Expansion and Accessibility of Mississippi, as a potentially strong president for MUW. Doty, from the W’s class of 1988, served in the state Senate from 2012 to 2020.
Scott Tollison, MUW’s interim president, told Mississippi Today he isn’t interested in the permanent role.
Miller, who was the W’s president since 2018, retired in June. In April, the IHL board of trustees held listening sessions for MUW stakeholders to gather feedback on traits they want to see in their next leader. Since then, the college board has not announced its next steps and plans for the president search.
The IHL board is still discussing details of the search, board President Steve Cunningham told Mississippi Today. IHL board member Teresa Hubbard is chair of MUW’s search committee.
Cunningham said trustees understand the importance of keeping MUW stakeholders updated throughout the search process to ensure transparency. While the college board hasn’t announced their plans, he anticipates the search process will take around three months once it’s initiated.
“We want to ensure that alumni, community residents and other stakeholders are involved in the search process,” Cunningham said.
Coalition forms out of concern for MUW’s future
The coalition’s endorsement of Taylor was a way for stakeholders to assert their voice in the presidential search, said Keith Gaskin, former Columbus mayor and coalition member. IHL trustees’ selection of MUW’s next leader is critical to the university’s future.
The Citizens Coalition for MUW and Mississippi School for Mathematics and Sciences includes alumni and Columbus residents. The group is asking the state’s college board to consider a prominent alumna as the institution’s next president. Credit: Keith Gaskin“It shouldn’t be about politics, favors or friendships,” Gaskin said. “It should be picking the absolute best person for MUW.”
The group’s seven members include MUW alumni and former professors, former elected officials, judges and community residents.
Gaskin said the coalition formed partly in response to recent legislative proposals and discussions that would close or merge MUW with Mississippi State University and relocate MSMS, a residential high school for gifted juniors and seniors. Betty Bryan, a parent of an MSMS student and MUW alumna, is also a member of the coalition.
Bruce Hanson, a former state representative who wrote the bill to establish MSMS, serves as the coalition’s chairman.
The merger or closure of these schools could devastate the local economy, said Martha Jo Mims, a retired MUW professor.
“We’ve had this burden for a couple years and the communication from our legislators doesn’t reassure us that they are committed to keeping these institutions in Columbus,” said Mims, who is also a coalition member. “It’s critical that our next leader recognizes the importance of these schools as the heart of our city’s economy and future.”
Jim Davidson Jr., a retired chancery court judge, said the coalition isn’t dissuading interested candidates from applying for the presidency. The group worried that IHL would announce a name before the process could even begin.
“We don’t know what IHL will do,” Davidson said. “But we want them to know that people in our community are talking about names who would make great leaders. We want to help them.”
Hence then, the article about group wants biotechnology researcher to lead mississippi university for women was published today ( ) and is available on Mississippi Today ( Middle East ) The editorial team at PressBee has edited and verified it, and it may have been modified, fully republished, or quoted. You can read and follow the updates of this news or article from its original source.
Read More Details
Finally We wish PressBee provided you with enough information of ( Group wants biotechnology researcher to lead Mississippi University for Women )
Also on site :