Board chair: University has received ‘robust pool of extremely well qualified candidates’ for presidency position

Dear Members of the Carlow University Community,  

On behalf of the presidential search committee, I write to provide you with an update on our search for Carlow University’s 11th president.  

As we began this process, we were committed to conduct the search in a manner that would attract the strongest possible pool of candidates for consideration. Now, we can confirm that this result has been achieved. On behalf of all members of the Search Committee, I am pleased to share that there has been an extraordinary response to the search, which resulted in a large and robust pool of extremely well qualified applicants. Carlow is highly respected and the presidency is attractive for many reasons – sense of institutional momentum, strong foundation in Mercy charisms, attractive location in the city of Pittsburgh among them. The evident hard work and dedication of faculty, staff, and students along with the vision and commitment of President Mellon, the cabinet, and the Board of Trustees also served to make this opportunity appealing. 

The Presidential Search Committee has been meeting with candidates for several weeks, having had multiple rounds of interviews, and is entering the final phase of the process which will culminate in a meeting with the Board of Trustees. The Search Committee’s charge from the Board is to recommend a final candidate to the Board, which will then vote to affirm the recommendation.    

As we discussed from the outset, the commitment to build the strongest possible pool of candidates has required protecting the confidentiality of candidates who entered the search process. Many of our candidates, as expected, are highly distinguished, visible leaders whose current positions would be in jeopardy should their identities become known. I hope you will understand how our commitment to confidentiality is serving Carlow’s best interests and precludes wider participation from the campus community. I appreciate the members of the Search Committee who have pledged to maintain – both during this process and beyond – the confidentiality of the entire candidate pool and the Committee’s deliberations.   

We look forward to sharing additional news about the search in the near future. For now, let me take this opportunity to recognize the outstanding work of the Presidential Search Committee. The Committee was carefully chosen to be representative of the Carlow University community, and it is doing that work incredibly well. It is a team of highly dedicated and thoughtful individuals, committed to the important task and common goal of finding an outstanding President for Carlow who will lead us forward in the years to come.  

Thank you for your interest and support.  

Dorothy A. Davis, JD 
Chair, Board of Trustees 
Chair, Presidential Search Committee 
Class of 1978 

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