Latest Updates
Introducing Our New President
Colorado College is excited and proud to announce its 14th president - L. Song Richardson - who will start in her new role on July 1, 2021. Learn more about President Richardson.
Update September 7, 2020
Dear Colorado College Community,
While I realize that the CC community is navigating the challenges and uncertainties of the pandemic, I felt you would appreciate an update on the presidential search.
To put it succinctly: the search is going very well. Through the efforts of our search consultants, Storbeck Search & Associates, and members of the search committee, we have completed the recruitment phase of the search. The pool of candidates for the presidency is extraordinary-deep, diverse, very talented, and very exciting.
The search committee is now in the process of assessing candidates, narrowing the pool, and conducting interviews. After completing this assessment phase of the search, the committee will make a recommendation to the Board of Trustees, which will appoint the new president. The new president will join CC by the summer of 2021.
Neither the pool of candidates, nor the search schedule, have been negatively impacted by the pandemic. CC's excellent academic program, faculty, students, staff, location, and reputation have attracted a very impressive group of applicants.
I want to thank the entire community for your sending your thoughts about the presidency and the search and for nominating candidates. I particularly want to thank the search committee, which includes CC faculty, staff, and students as well as trustees, for their hard work over the summer, and in the weeks and months to come.
Please stay safe and well.
Sincerely,
Jeff
Keller
'91,
P'22
Search
Committee
Chair
Trustee
and
Vice
Chair,
Board
of
Trustees
Update May 12, 2020
In my last update, I explained that the presidential search was entering a consultative phase. That phase has been completed and I'm happy to report that our meetings with the CC community were very well attended and extremely helpful. Thank you for taking the time to participate in this critical part of the search, and for sharing your ideas and observations with the committee.
During March and April, more than 100 students, faculty, and staff participated in virtual meetings with the members of the search committee and search consultant Shelly Storbeck. We learned a great deal from these virtual sessions, which were characterized by collegial, open conversations about the issues that will face the next president, the skills that person will need to succeed, and the reasons CC will be attractive to candidates. In addition, 700 members of the CC community, including alumni and families of CC students, completed an online survey. We are also very grateful to those of you who have submitted nominations for the position. We continue to welcome nominations, which you can send to ColoradoCollegePresident@storbecksearch.com.
The survey responses, and our conversations with faculty, staff, and students, have helped us prepare a position specification, which we will use to recruit candidates. You can view the position specification on the search webpage.
The search will now move into the recruitment phase, during which our search consultants will reach out to their network of experts to seek more nominations. They will also have preliminary conversations with nominees and applicants. The search committee will assist with recruitment and, keeping your input in mind, begin to assess candidates and determine which will be invited to interview for the position.
On behalf of the search committee, thank you for engaging with us in this important work. I hope that you and your loved ones are safe and well.
Sincerely,
Jeff
Keller
'91,
P'22
Search
Committee
Chair
Trustee
and
Vice
Chair,
Board
of
Trustees
Update April 2, 2020
Dear CC Faculty, Staff, and Students,
The
presidential
search
is
now
in
a
"consultative
phase"
during
which
we
are
asking
the
CC
community
to
give
us
their
thoughts
about
the
next
president:
what
opportunities
and
challenges
they
will
face,
what
skills
and
characteristics
will
make
them
successful,
and
what
features
of
CC
will
attract
candidates
to
the
college.
With
this
information,
we
will
put
together
a
description
of
the
position,
which
will
be
used
to
recruit
candidates.
Over
the
next
two
to
three
weeks,
the
search
committee
and
search
consultant
Shelly
Storbeck
will
meet
virtually
with
groups
of
faculty,
staff,
and
students.
We
also
invite
all
members
of
the
CC
community
to
participate
in
an
online
survey,
which
you
can
access
through
the
presidential
search
website.
The
survey
will
give
everyone
an
anonymous
way
to
provide
feedback
and
make
nominations
and
other
suggestions
to
the
committee.
I
look
forward
to
hearing
your
thoughts
as
we
engage
in
this
very
important
work
for
Colorado
College.
And
in
this
difficult
time,
I
wish
you
and
your
loved
ones
good
health.
The
CC
community
is
strong
and
resilient
and
we
look
forward
to
the
time
when
we
are
back
together
on
our
beautiful
campus.
Sincerely,
Jeff
Keller
'91,
P'22
Trustee
&
Search
Committee
Chair
Vice
Chair,
Board
of
Trustees
Update March 9, 2020
The Presidential Search Committee invites all CC faculty, staff, and students to attend open forums on Wednesday, March 25.
The forums are an opportunity for you, as a member of the CC community, to provide input on these questions:
- What are the points of attraction for the position of president? What makes Colorado College distinctive?
- What challenges and opportunities will the next president address?
- What skill sets and personal attributes will the candidate of choice likely possess?
Responses to these questions will help the search committee create a position specification, which will then be used to recruit candidates.
The forums will be held in Gates Common Room, Palmer Hall at these times:
- Staff Open Forum: 10:15-11:15 a.m.
- Student Open Forum: 1:45 -2:45 p.m.
- Faculty Open Forum: 3-4 p.m.
Shortly after the forums, you will be invited to participate in an online survey and to submit nominations for the position, providing an additional way to give input to the search committee.
Update February 26, 2020
Dear CC Community,
At its meeting last week, the Board of Trustees unanimously elected Provost Alan Townsend to serve as interim president, beginning Aug. 1, 2020, and ending when a new president joins Colorado College, which we anticipate will be in Summer 2021. While Alan has informed us that he will not be a candidate for the presidency, the board and I are deeply grateful to him for assuming the interim role. We believe he will provide much needed continuity in order to pursue critical work including the implementation of the antiracism plan, the Colorado Pledge, and the Stroud Scholars program, construction of Ed Robson Arena and associated projects, planning for the future of the sciences and humanities, the climate change task force, and completion of the capital campaign.
The board, which is responsible for electing CC's presidents, also has launched a presidential search. The presidential search committee is chaired by board vice chair Jeff Keller '91 and includes nine trustees, four faculty members, two staff members, and two students. Members of the search committee are listed below, and we thank them for engaging in this very important work. The faculty members were appointed in consultation with the Faculty Executive Committee, and the staff on the committee include a member of Staff Council and a member of the president's cabinet. The student members will be the CCSGA President (who will be elected in early March) and another student appointed in consultation with the CCSGA. The search will be assisted by search consultant Shelly Weiss Storbeck, managing partner of Storbeck Search & Associates. Kim Waldron, chief of staff and special assistant to the board, will provide administrative support to the committee.
The search will begin with a consultative process to gather feedback from the CC community on the characteristics and skills desired in the new president, the challenges and opportunities that person will face, and what distinguishes CC today. The search committee will hold on-campus meetings and open forums on March 25 for students, faculty, and staff. The committee also will provide an electronic means for the CC community to submit input and nominations. In April and May, using the information gathered in this consultative phase, the search committee will create a document that describes Colorado College, the position, and the desired skills and strengths of the new president. Recruitment will then begin and the search will enter a confidential phase. The committee will share frequent updates with the CC community via email and a presidential search website. We expect a new president will be named by Winter 2020-21 and join CC in Summer 2021.
We are a distinctive, excellent institution, striving to be better, to innovate, and to provide the best liberal arts education in the country. President Tiefenthaler has strengthened the college in many ways, and Provost Townsend will continue the important work we have begun in the past few years. We will attract an excellent pool of candidates because of our strength. Presidential transitions are moments of great opportunity, but we also understand these transitions can be unsettling. As we begin the search for a new president, we must come together, with optimism and with realism, to tell our story and share our aspirations for Colorado College.
Best Regards,
Susan
S.
Burghart
Chair,
Board
of
Trustees
Contact
Contact Lyrae Williams in the President's Office:
719-389-6700
14 E. Cache La Poudre St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80903