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Final Four Candidates In NIU Presidential Search

Northern Illinois University

The search for Northern Illinois University’s next president has been narrowed to four candidates. The school is seeking a replacement for President John Peters, who will leave the university in June.

The Presidential Search Committee interviewed ten candidates last week at a hotel near O’Hare Airport. The 28-member panel chose four, who will go on to interview with the NIU Board of Trustees Friday, March 22nd. On the 23rd, the four finalists will meet with a group of “stakeholders” or people representing faculty, staff, alumni, foundation board members, and community leaders.

All the meetings are being held in undisclosed, off-campus locations in closed session.  Each stakeholder taking part in the search and interviews has to sign a confidentiality agreement to protect the identities of the candidates.

Board of Trustees chair Cherilyn Murer says the search is being conducted as a “closed, hybrid-approach” process, as advised by the search firm, Parker Executive Search of Atlanta, Georgia.

“In today’s marketplace, a confidential search process that protects the identities of the candidates during the search itself is critical in attracting the best candidates during a presidential search.”

The process is quite different from the 2000 search that resulted in the hiring of Peters. Finalists were brought to campus for open forums, where students and the public could meet and question them before the Board of Trustees made its final decision.

Susan is an award-winning reporter/writer at her favorite radio station. She's also WNIJ's Perspectives editor, Under Rocks contributor, and local host of All Things Considered.
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