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31, 2014
Strategic planning and the 175th anniversary to be the university’s focus this semester In an interview with The Westfield Voice, interim president Elizabeth Preston expressed optimism that the 175th anniversary and the events associated will be the focus, not the presidential search.
Joshua Clark Editor-in-Chief
Dr. Elizabeth Hall Preston, interim president of Westfield State University, is not interested in the permanent position of president. Preston, who has been in that position since Nov. 8 after the resignation and retirement of embattled now-former president Dr. Evan S. Dobelle, spoke to The Westfield Voice in an exclusive interview
conducted before the start of the semester. She said that even if she were to be interested, Richard Freeland, commissioner of higher education, would not allow it. “Commissioner Freeland… is very clear that interim presidents are not eligible to be candidates for the permanent position,” she said. She continued, “He was very clear on that point when we had a conversation and that’s not a problem for me.” The position of interim president fell in her lap in a way. According to her, Preston spoke about a range of topics in an interview, which lasted about 35 minutes. She holds optimistic hopes for the campus this semester, espe-
cially in the realm of the 175th anniversary of the university that has been an ongoing theme throughout the year. The university released a 2014 calendar that features history of the university, and the committee that plans the events surrounding the anniversary met to revisit their plans. The former chair of the Communication department addressed the presidential search process as well. The process has not begun, she said, because the board of trustees has been tied up with the lawsuits related to the scandal that brought down her predecessor. “The board of trustees is really who conducts the search and I don’t think they feel like until they’re on the other side that they are in a position to be doing a search,” she
President’s Award for Excellence in Leadership recipients
The recipients of the President’s Award for Excellence in Leadership (from left to right): Katherine Robinson, Brittany Moniz, Meaghen Chalmers, Josephine Lannon, interim president Liz Preston, Melissa Stello, Casey Anne Dupelle, Jessica Lindsay.
The 2013-2014 President’s Award for Excellence in Leadership was awarded on Dec. 6. The award is intended to recognize outstanding accomplishments in academics, community service, and civic engagement. To qualify for the award, students are required to have at least a 3.3 GPA, community service experience, and a committment to citizenship to the university or a community organziation. A committee of faculty, administration, and students select winners from a sizeable pool of nominees.
said. The search is conducted by the board of trustees. Typically, a search committee would consist of trustees, administrators, faculty members, and students. Their charge would be to sift through the applications and pick final candidates. These final candidates would be subjected to the microscope of the campus. They would be brought to campus to participate in interviews, forums, meetings, and oneon-one discussions. This process is not necessarily dissimilar to that of finding a faculty member. In order to get to the point of creating a selection committee, the 2012-2017 strategic plan needs to
see CLARK on page 21
In this week’s issue Campus pages 2-8 Recap of Dobelle scandal Student Gov. meeting Voice of the Week Black History Month Op-Ed pages 9-13 ‘The Conservative View’ ‘From the Editor’s Desk’ ‘Gentlemen’s Weekly’ A&E pages 14-16 Young the Giant album Album reviews ‘Knowing to Cook’ Sports pages 17-20 Owls Basketball Owls Track & Field Owls Hockey
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