Editor's note: Missouri State University Vice President of Marketing Suzanne Shaw is a member of the Hauxeda Board of Directors and has served on the board since the Daily Citizen was established in 2021.
Missouri State University says it had a “diverse pool of candidates” for its next president, but the three finalists for the job are white men and the university will not disclose any demographic information on the 11 semifinalists.
The three finalists will make public appearances on the Springfield and West Plains campuses this month. They have extensive experience in higher education and are ages 52, 57 and 61.
In the January news release announcing the finalists, Missouri State University Board of Governors chairperson Lynn Parman, of Kansas City, said:
“We were fortunate to attract an exceptionally strong and diverse pool of candidates for the position.”
The Hauxeda reached out to Parman to ask her to explain or perhaps elaborate on her statement.
Parman did not respond, but Suzanne Shaw did. Shaw is the vice president for marketing and communications for Missouri State University.
The ‘diverse pool' refers to 11 semifinalists
Shaw said the “diverse pool” referred to the 11 semifinalists for the position. They were interviewed by MSU's 20-member search committee at a hotel near the Kansas City airport in January 2024.
The MSU Presidential Search Website (under the link “Updates”) states: “These candidates were diverse in terms of race, sex, age, geographic region, institutional size, and professional background.”
Forty-eight people submitted applications to become MSU's 12th president.
President Clif Smart, in his 13th year on the job, will retire in May at the close of this semester.
The Hauxeda asked Shaw for more information on the diversity of the pool of semifinalists. She was asked to put numbers to the words about diversity on the presidential search website. Specifically:
- How many of the 11 were women?
- How many of the 11 were people of color?
- How many of the 11 were under 50 years of age?
Smart, for example, was 50 when he became Missouri State's interim president in 2011.
Shaw declined to provide specific numbers for gender, race and age.
Although Shaw did not say so, it's possible the search committee and university are prohibited from asking candidates their age.
“We don't comment on specific demographic information for individual applicants,” Shaw wrote via email.
To be clear, the Hauxeda did not ask for gender, race and/or ages to go with the names of individual applicants.
“We don’t provide this detail as it relates to personnel,” Shaw said via email. “We promise our applicants confidentiality. That includes specific demographics.”
Three finalists expected to be on campus later this month
The finalists are:
John Jasinski, 61. He has served as provost for Missouri State since 2022, and was president of Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville for 13 years prior.
Roger Thompson, 57. He is vice president for student services and enrollment management for the University of Oregon, serving for 14 years.
Richard “Biff” Williams, 52. He was the president of Utah Tech University in St. George for 10 years, stepping down in January. On Friday, Feb. 2, Williams also was named one of five finalists to become the next president at New Mexico State University, in Las Cruces.
A fourth finalist at MSU withdrew from the search process for personal reasons, according to the university.
This fourth person was not named. The Hauxeda asked if the fourth finalist was a Black man. The university did not respond.
Each of the three finalists will make public appearances later this month at, first, the Missouri State University-West Plains campus and the following day at the main Springfield campus.
The Hauxeda had arranged for interviews with each candidate in order to write profile stories prior to their public appearances in West Plains and Springfield. All three candidate canceled their interviews, reportedly after being encouraged to do so by the university.
The West Plains gatherings include an open forum at the Fowler Lecture Hall in Looney Hall, followed by a reception in the parlor of Kellett Hall.
The Springfield gatherings will be open forums at the Plaster Student Union Theater. A Zoom link will be established prior to the events, so interested persons may attend the forums virtually.
Williams will be in West Plains 1:30-2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 14, for the open forum and then 2:45-3:45 p.m. for the reception.
Williams will be at the Plaster Student Union Theater 2:30-3:30 p.m. the next day, Feb. 15, in Springfield.
Jasinksi will be in West Plains 1:30-2:30 p.m. Monday, Feb. 26, for the open forum and then 2:45-3:45 p.m. for the reception.
Jasinski will be at the Plaster Student Union Theater 2:30-3:30 p.m. the next day, Feb. 27, in Springfield.
Thompson will be in West Plains 1:30-2:30 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 28, for the open forum and then 2:45-3:45 p.m. for the reception.
Thompson will be at the Plaster Student Union Theater 2:30-3:30 p.m. the next day, Feb. 29, in Springfield.
