Hampton has named a new president. So how come we haven’t heard about it?
Rumors about the HBCU community come a dime a dozen, but if there’s any truth to the speculation circulating around Hampton University, it could prove to be a mess with premium, long-term costs for one of the nation’s most venerable institutions.
A growing number of alumni and faculty say that a president has been chosen to succeed long-standing leader William R. Harvey, who will retire in June. A name has emerged but hasn’t been confirmed by the university’s board of trustees, which has been silent from the start about the search process and the candidates who may have been involved.
HU’s new president has been working behind the curtains. I think HU is trying to control the potential social and traditional media narrative to avoid any distractions or issues. Who knows, the new president may be announced on the same day as upcoming Harvey’s retirement event.
I don’t get it. There are a dozen examples of career academics who led schools which have either drowned or are drowning, and those presidents had PhD’s and higher ed experience. Politics is an even clearer example. The old methodology of selecting presidential candidates got us where we are now. We’re at a very critical juncture, so if they can get the job done, shouldn’t the optics/resume be secondary?