ANN ARBOR—The University of Michigan Board of Regents has announced changes to its presidential selection process to conform to a court order by the 22nd Judicial Circuit Court.

“As a practical matter, the effect of this court order brought on by the Ann Arbor News, the Detroit Free Press and the Detroit News is to limit the amount of information available to the Regents,” said Walter Harrison, U-M vice president for university relations. “While the Regents have severe reservations about these restrictions on how they perform their constitutional duty to choose a president, given the court’s decision, they believe strongly that their most important responsibility at this point in the University’s history is to select the best possible person as president.”

The timetable to be followed by the Regents is as follows: Thursday, Oct. 17

The Presidential Search Committee, a committee of the whole made up of the Board of Regents, will meet at 9 a.m. in an open meeting in the Regents’ Room of the Fleming Administration Building. Joining the Regents will be Jeffrey Lehman, chair of the Presidential Search Advisory Committee and dean of the U-M Law School. All members of the Presidential Search Advisory Committee are expected to participate in the meeting.

Lehman will publicly present the names of five candidates recommended by the Presidential Search Advisory Committee. Along with the individuals’ names, Regents will receive their curricula vitae.

In addition, Regents will receive the names and backgrounds of all individuals who applied or were nominated for the presidency. Approximately 300 people were considered by the Presidential Search Advisory Committee.

All materials distributed to the PSC at the meeting also will be given to members of the media.

Lehman and the Presidential Search Advisory Committee will review for Regents the process and criteria used by the advisory committee in reviewing all nominees and applicants and in recommending the five candidates. They also will answer any questions raised by members of the Presidential Search Committee.

Following the meeting, Regents will review background materials in the Regents’ Room on all individuals who have either been nominated or applied for the presidency. This session is intended as a study session for Regents. While it will not be a meeting of the board, media may be present during that session. All materials available to the Regents will be made available to the media and the public immediately after that session. Friday, Oct. 18

In the morning, the Presidential Search Committee will meet in the Regents’ Room to review the specific contents of certain applications. The meeting will be closed.

The Michigan Open Meetings Act and the Circuit Court’s order allow the Regents to conduct a closed session to review job applications if an individual has asked that his or her application materials be considered in confidence. Regents are prohibited from making a decision in a closed meeting.

Lehman will be available to answer questions about the application materials. Elsa Kircher Cole, the University’s General Counsel, will be present to be sure the Regents strictly follow the restrictions that the Open Meetings Act imposes on this session.

In the afternoon, the Presidential Search Committee will meet to consider and adopt a list of finalists for the presidency. The Regents may consider names instead of, or in addition to, those recommended by the Presidential Search Advisory Committee. The meeting will be in the Regents’ Room and will be open to the public.

Monday, Oct. 21, and following

Finalists will begin visiting campus for a series of meetings.

Each candidate will be on campus for one day, and every meeting during his or her stay will be open to the press and the public.

While on campus, each finalist will:

–Be interviewed by the Presidential Search Committee. The meeting will be open to the public. These meetings will be held each day of a campus visit from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.

–Meet with members of the University community and the general public in a town meeting setting. These meetings will be held each day of a campus visit from 3:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library.

–Attend a social function with a mix of invited guests. Arrangements will be made to allow media access to this function. The times and places of these functions will be announced as they become available. Date to be determined

At the conclusion of the candidates’ campus visits, the Presidential Search Committee will meet to determine its next steps.

U-M News and Information ServicesUniversity of Michigan