Presidential Search Committee Charge

CHARGE OF THE MIDDLEBURY COLLEGE BOARD OF TRUSTEES TO THE PRESIDENTIAL SEARCH COMMITTEE

The Middlebury College Board of Trustees (“the Board”) authorizes the Presidential Search Committee (“the Committee”) to conduct the critical work that will result in the appointment of Middlebury College’s 18th president. Per the College’s charter and bylaws, the Board maintains the sole responsibility for selecting the next president of Middlebury. This charge details the Board’s expectations for the search process and the responsibilities that the Board grants the Committee. 

• Committee Composition and Role: The Committee will be broadly representative of the Middlebury community as a whole, and all members of the Committee will share an equal voice in the process. While each individual member is encouraged to bring their own unique perspective to the Committee’s work, members are not charged with representing or advocating for a specific department, unit, program, or constituency, but rather are responsible for considering the long-term interests of the entire institution. 
• Conflicts of Interest: Committee members shall promptly disclose to the Committee Chair any actual or potential conflict(s) of interest regarding their relationship with any applicant. When such disclosure is made, the Committee Chair, after consultation with the Executive Committee of the Board of Trustees, General Counsel, and/or others as deemed appropriate, shall determine whether the committee member should be removed from the search committee.   
• Partnership with Isaacson, Miller: The Committee will collaborate with Isaacson, Miller, an organization with extensive experience in helping to identify college and university leaders and provide professional assistance and advice during the search and selection process. 
• Core Functions of the Committee: The Committee will focus on three core functions during the search process:
  • Definition: defining collectively the criteria and goals for Middlebury’s next President, and creating a succinct document intended to inform, inspire, and draw the best candidates.
  • Discovery: mobilizing the Middlebury community to identify compelling candidates while at the same time using the search firm’s network of relationships to identify additional strong candidates and make appropriate points of contact.
  • Discernment: learning more and more about fewer and fewer people as the process evolves in order to recommend a uniquely qualified leader for an institution that holds a distinctive position within higher education. 
• Single Candidate Recommendation: The Committee will be expected to recommend a single candidate to the Board through a process that protects the confidentiality of all candidates.
• Presidential Search Profile: The Committee will develop a presidential search profile that is informed by input from the Middlebury community and that clearly and compellingly articulates the opportunity at Middlebury and the qualities we are seeking in our next president. 
• Community Outreach: Through multiple mechanisms, the Committee will actively seek and thoughtfully consider the perspectives of the Middlebury community about what it needs and desires in the next president.
• Applicant Pool: Through an active, expansive, and inclusive search, the Committee will consider a pool of applicants that has exceptional qualifications for the presidency, is diverse across multiple dimensions, and who understand and embrace Middlebury’s mission. 
• Consideration of Candidate’s Views on Middlebury: The Committee will consider carefully a candidate’s views on new direction(s) for Middlebury, while maintaining programs/curricula that are central to Middlebury’s distinctive mission.
• Committee Schedule and Meetings: The Committee will set a schedule for its work that will result in timely identification of Middlebury’s next president. Committee members are expected to prepare for and attend all Committee meetings. 
• Confidentiality:  The members of the Committee agree, by accepting their role on the Committee, that they will hold all information absolutely confidential in all aspects of the search and committee work. The duty and expectation of confidentiality as to the candidates, work, discussions, and deliberations of the Committee shall extend beyond the work of this Committee. This includes, but is not limited to, permanently protecting the identity and qualifications of all individuals who have expressed interest in or who have applied for the position. A breach of confidentiality is grounds for removal from the Committee.
• Communications: Committee members may not speak on behalf of the Committee, the Board, or the institution. All members of the Committee are expected to refer search-related inquiries to the Chair of the Committee. The Committee, by and through its Chair or other authorized Middlebury College spokesperson, will keep the Middlebury community apprised of its work and will be attentive to input from community members. The Chair of the Committee will make periodic reports to the Board about the progress of the search. 
• Background Checks: Committee members shall refrain from independently conducting background checks or inquiries regarding any applicants or individuals who have expressed interest in the position and must adhere to the vetting process approved by the Committee Chair. 
• Presidential Transition: The Committee will support the successful transition of the next president of Middlebury as appropriate.

Non-discrimination Statement: 

Middlebury College complies with applicable provisions of state and federal law which prohibit discrimination in employment, or in admission or access to its educational or extracurricular programs, activities, or facilities, on the basis of race, creed, color, place of birth, ancestry, ethnicity, national origin (including language), religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, service in the armed forces of the United States, positive HIV-related blood test results, genetic information, or against qualified individuals with disabilities on the basis of disability and/or any other status or characteristic as defined and to the extent protected by applicable law. Middlebury also complies with all other anti-discrimination protections that might be provided by particular states in which it operates educational programs. See Middlebury’s full statement and related policies here.

The Board is grateful to the members of the Committee for their participation in this very important effort on behalf of the entire Middlebury community.