LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- The next president of the University of Louisville will likely come from outside the institution, as interim President Lori Stewart Gonzalez confirmed to WDRB News on Friday that she did not advance to final stage of the confidential search process.
The university's board of trustees is on track with its goal to name the successful candidate by the end of the year, perhaps as soon as November, according to trustee Raymond Burse, chairman of the board's presidential search committee.
The committee has narrowed the field to a handful of finalists, according to sources. Burse declined to say how many candidates remain in the mix.
More than 60 people applied, including current leaders of research universities, he said.
"I have been very, very impressed with the candidate pool that we have had and the number of sitting presidents who applied for the position," Burse said in an interview Friday. " ... We're still working to narrow it down."
Managed by a third-party consultant, the search is unfolding entirely behind closed doors. Burse declined to disclose the finalists. The search committee has not finished its interviews, he said.
The university is looking to replace Neeli Bendapudi, who energized the school with her arrival in 2018 but left many Cardinals feeling jilted when she resigned in December to head Penn State University. A tenure of less than four years is considered short for a university leader.
While it was not explicitly stated in the university's job description, the trustees are looking for a candidate willing to commit to seven to 10 years in the job, Burse said.
"We want people to be honest with us, in terms of whether they're looking at this job as a stepping stone or a place where they are coming to spend the rest of their academic career," Burse said.
Aside from Bendapudi, the university has had a tumultuous succession of interim leaders since the trustees forced out James Ramsey in 2016 over revelations of what they considered excessive and nontransparent compensation involving the university's affiliated foundation. Ramsey had led since 2002.
"Just think about what this university has gone through, what, since 2016/2017, in terms of just the issues and problems," Burse said. "... So the university community needs some continuity. They need somebody that's going to be here, that's going to provide consistent leadership that they can count on."
Burse said trustees have no way of enforcing that other than structuring pay and benefits to reward longevity. He noted that U of L gave Bendapudi a more lucrative contract in the summer of 2021, only to lose her a few months later to Penn State.
"We thought we had put a real sweetener in there," he said.
University of Louisville interim President Lori Stewart Gonzalez attends the 58th annual Country Ham Breakfast and Auction at the Kentucky State Fair on Aug. 25, 2022.Â
A native of Mount Vernon, Kentucky, Gonzalez came to U of L in 2021 as provost, the university's No. 2 administrative post. She had been vice chancellor for academic, faculty and student affairs at the University of Tennessee's Health Science Center.
Burse declined to discuss Gonzalez as a candidate for the permanent job but said she has done "good job for the institution" in the interim role.
"There were lots of things that needed to be done," Burse said. "And she has aggressively addressed those and is taking those on. And so I think the board — I know I am — is appreciative of the work that she's done."
