Faculty Complain About Chancellor Search

An unsigned “Statement of Concern” from faculty members says the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges board is violating its own core values and professional standards with its presidential search, reported The Quad-City Times. Four members of the faculty spoke to the Board of Trustees at this week's meeting and referred to the statement.

On March 31, the board named two finalists and then a few days later voted to extend the search.

Faculty members charge:

• That there was no email notification of the meeting where the search was extended.
• The meeting was held via Zoom view only, with nonmembers unable to participate.
• The extension was unfair to the two finalists named, one of whom was a woman and the other a Black man. “It appears that the problem wasn’t so much that there were two candidates; instead, the problem became that there were only these two candidates,” according to the statement.

The board issued this statement: “It is important for us to listen to the concerns expressed in this statement about the chancellor search, and we’re committed to working with all of our stakeholders to ensure the college is prepared to meet the needs of our students and communities, now and in the future.”