A peek into the process that picked the university's 23rd president
Suresh Garimella speaks with members of the search committee shortly after the Arizona Board of Regents appointed him as the 23rd president of the University of Arizona.
Suresh Garimella says he's "ready to bear down" as he prepares for the "awesome responsibility" of being the 23rd president of the University of Arizona. Garimella's appointment was the culmination of a five-month search that brought together voices from students, employees, community members and stakeholders from throughout campus and the region who all wanted to have input on who would lead the university into the future.
The process began in the spring after University President Robert C. Robbins announced that he would step down after fulfilling the terms of his current contract (or before, if a successor was chosen before the end date of the contract). Soon afterward, the Arizona Board of Regents announced the formation of an 18-member advisory committee made up of five faculty members and university staff and leadership as well as community leaders, ABOR members and a student representative.
Caleb Simmons, executive director of Online Education and professor, Department of Religious Studies
The committee's work started with a lot of listening, said Caleb Simmons, executive director of Online Education, professor in the Department of Religious Studies and member of the advisory committee. The effort included three public town halls, 19 listening sessions throughout campus, a campuswide survey and the collection of email comments. More than 4,200 students, faculty, staff and community members provided feedback, according to ABOR.
"Very clear themes emerged in the feedback that we used to shape the search," Simmons said. "We saw it as our mission to go out and get who the community said that we needed to be our leader and to take us forward. Based on that, we developed an ideal prospect profile and that became our North Star."
What Wildcats wanted
For faculty, academic excellence was a common priority.
Joellen Russell, Distinguished Professor of geosciences
"The listening tours and results of the survey showed people wanted traditional excellence in academia," said committee member Joellen Russell, University Distinguished Professor and head of the Department of Geosciences. "They wanted a higher education leader who had come up through the ranks. They wanted the best of the best, that was really clear."
Among staff members, it was important that they have access and input as decisions are made about the university's future.
"It's very important to the staff that the incoming president engages with us," said committee member Christina Rocha, manager of the Research, Innovation and Impact Business Center Transaction Team. "And it needs to be substantive engagement. There needs to be more pathways for staff to be able to voice their concerns."
A common desire among all groups was that the next president be a good communicator and someone who understands the responsibilities of a land-grant institution.
Christina Rocha, manager of the Research, Innovation and Impact Business Center Transaction Team
An impressive pool
Keeping in mind the input they received, the committee began considering what Simmons called "a phenomenal group of prospects."
"The prospects that were interested were of such a high level," Simmons said. "That really affirmed that the University of Arizona is a world-class institution and the best people want to be here."
Because of the large number of prospects, the committee would meet regularly during significant stretches of the five-month search process.
Russell said the committee worked to respect the need for confidentiality. Among the prospects from the national search, the committee conducted preliminary reviews of each prospect's background and qualifications followed by additional in-depth discussions with prospects. After a thorough review, the search committee forwarded prospect information to the board for consideration.
'We got the unicorn'
Simmons said members of the campus community should feel confident that their input was the driving force behind the committee's efforts as is evidenced by the stakeholders who expressed their excitement for Garimella.
"The qualifications were lofty – nearly impossible – but I'm happy to say we got the unicorn," Simmons said at Garimella's introductory news conference on Aug. 9.
Since 2019, Garimella has served as the 27th president of the University of Vermont, which, like the University of Arizona, is a land-grant university. A professor of mechanical engineering, he also continued to teach and mentor students during his presidency, including supervising Ph.D. students. He is a member of the National Science board, which oversees the National Science Foundation and serves as an independent body of advisers to the president and Congress on policy matters related to science and engineering.
"He is a passionate and dynamic leader, and I think he's going to be great at engaging our campus community and having a great vision for the U of A's future," Rocha said.
In addition to his academic and administrative qualifications, Russell said she couldn't help but be excited about another aspect of Garimella's approach to his job.
"He apparently throws these awesome pancake breakfasts," she said. "I swear I'm going to be in line with the students."
Pleased with the process
Simmons said members of the campus community should feel confident that their input was the driving force behind the committee's efforts.
"We came in with a lot of different perspective and wanting a lot of different things," Simmons said. "But when we heard the collective voice of the community, it was strong enough that we all understood our marching orders from our constituents, and that's what we went after."
Russell said she was energized by the interest and passion that the community showed in finding the right person for the job.
"I think the whole campus community is ready to get off the ropes and back to the business of education and research that we are so good at."