Field of finalists for University of Iowa leader lacks diversity

IOWA CITY - All four of the finalists to replace retired University of Iowa President Sally Mason are white men.

Despite the lack of gender and racial diversity among the top prospects, at least one member of the presidential search committee said she and her colleagues made that a top priority.

'There was diversity in the larger pool, and I will tell you that it was a constant and important issue that we discussed at every meeting,” said Sarah Fisher Gardial, dean of the Henry B. Tippie College of Business and a faculty representative on the 21-member search committee.

That committee, formed in February to help recruit and review candidates, included 10 women and several minorities. Gardial said she personally made phone calls to potential female candidates she hoped would apply.

'At the end of the day, we couldn't get the finalist pool we would have all liked,” she said. 'I think everyone would have been happier with more diversity.”

That said, Gardial said she is convinced the process has been fair and inclusive.

'The committee worked very hard to bring a strong set of finalists to campus, and I think we did exactly what we were asked to do,” she said.

The identities of the 42 others in the candidate pool have not been publicly disclosed.

In conversations with Parker Executive Search, the firm hired to facilitate the hunt for a new UI president, Gardial said she learned that the lack of diversity among presidential candidates is a national issue. Many potential female candidates, for instance, are happy with their positions and aren't looking, Gardial said.

And, Gardial added, the University of Iowa 'is probably the last campus in the country that needs to stand up and apologize around lack of gender diversity.”

She noted former presidents Mason and Mary Sue Coleman, in addition to deans such as herself in leadership roles.

'If we didn't have that track record to stand on, we might be more apologetic,” she said. 'But this is a campus that welcomes on a regular basis and enforces diversity on the gender side.”

The Board of Regents said it will announce a selection Thursday.