Lisa Watson

The Northwest College presidential search committee met Tuesday to finalize a profile outlining the minimum qualifications, competencies, and characteristics for presidential candidates. However, there was a consensus among the committee members that it would be best to suspend the search altogether until the college can be better positioned to find a new president.

Instead of going through a whole recruiting process, the NWC Board of Trustees will look at extending the contract of Interim President Lisa Watson, contingent on her being willing to serve another year. 

NWC is facing budgetary challenges stemming from nearly $3 million in lost support from the state and the college’s transformation plan is nearing the implementation phase.  

“It seems to me, in order to determine what we want and need in a president, we need to have some inkling of where we’re going,” said Gerald Giraud, vice president of academic affairs, adding that, “perhaps we should get our house in order before we go on a search for a new president.” 

Shelby Wetzel, executive director of the NWC Foundation, had been involved with previous searches for president and also had some misgivings about the current search. She said it lacked the enthusiasm and excitement of previous searches. 

“I’m having a really hard time putting my arms around this,” Wetzel said. “It feels really different this time, and not really good.”

With all the challenges and changes the college is facing, some committee members wondered how that would affect their ability to sell the college. 

Trustee Dusty Spomer pointed out that, in recruiting a president, there is a sales component to the task, in which the college is being sold to the candidates.

“If we’re not certain what we want, and if we’re not convinced about what this looks like, how are we going to convince anyone else?” Spomer said. 

NWC human resources director Jill Anderson agreed that, in terms of recruiting, the current situation at the college makes the job much more difficult. 

“I do know the campus is very fragile right now from a morale standpoint, and I don’t think we’d put our best face forward,” Anderson said. 

Other committee members wondered about the impact of finding the right candidate only to have him or her pass on the offer. 

“We may have lost the battle before we’ve even begun,” said Bryan Lee, vice president of the foundation board.

Other considerations

Besides the uncertainty hovering over the college, members of the search committee brought up other concerns.

Trustee Carolyn Danko said six higher education institutions were seeking presidents this month, which would be “pulling from the pool” of candidates that might pursue the opportunity at NWC. 

“The pickings are going to be really slim for us,” Danko said. 

After other committee members commented on whether it was the best time of year to recruit a college president, Anderson said she had spoken to four recruiting firms and former NWC President Stefani Hicswa, who all said there really wasn’t a specific hunting season for college presidents.

Shaman Quinn, NWC financial aid and scholarships director, said the search ran the risk of landing what is generally known as a “turnaround executive.” These are professionals who jump into troubled organizations and get them back on track.

Often, they seek new opportunities once the organization they oversee is on a better footing, which means NWC would potentially need to go through the expense and hassle of finding another president again in a couple years. 

NWC Board of Trustees member Lawrence Todd pointed out that candidates pursuing opportunities at a college with so much uncertainty may be coming from positions with as much or more uncertainty. So, they might be, Todd said, “rats off the sinking ship.”

Amy McKinney, associate professor of history, raised the prospect of continuing the search to see what kinds of candidates they do get, but Anderson suggested that would not be the best approach for such a high-level position.  

“I think if we’re going to be in it, we’re in it to win it,” Anderson said. 

Deb Jacobs, senior office assistant for the physical plant, said the classified staff she represented on the committee wouldn’t be opposed to waiting.   

“They want a strong leader and not just the one we pick,” Jacobs said. 

Extend interim

A few of the committee members remarked on a letter submitted to the committee by Clay Cummins, who serves on the NWC Foundation Board of Directors and the Alumni Association Board of Directors. Cummins has a lot of influence among the NWC and foundation leadership, and in some ways the letter helped spur the discussion on suspending the search. 

“When he [Cummins] talks, I listen,” said Lee.

In the letter, Cummins raised concerns about the expense involved with finding a new president at a time the college’s finances were strained. 

Giraud pointed out that the college didn’t hire an outside consultant to help with the search, but noted the amount of time the process had been consuming. 

“It’s sucking away a lot of energy,” Giraud said.  

Cummins argued Watson was “well qualified to lead” and that her contract should be extended until June 2022. 

The option was well-received by the other committee members. 

Amy Solomon, president elect of the alumni board, said Watson’s experience at NWC was a strong quality to have right now. 

“I think there’s a lot of benefit at this point to having someone who knows the college,” Solomon said. 

Giraud said the move would save the college money on a salary. Watson was previously vice president of finance and administrative services and they could leave that position open while her contract was extended. This would help alleviate some of the college’s budgetary issues. 

Madyson Riedinger, who serves on the NWC student senate, spoke highly of the option, saying that Watson had met with the senate and engaged students well.

“We know what we got. The bird in the hand is worth two in the bush,” Danko said in support of the contract extension. 

Spomer pointed out that, before the board of trustees could vote on suspending the search, they’d need to know if Watson would agree to the contract extension. 

Trustee John Housel said the board of trustee executives — Board President Mark Wurzel, Todd and Spomer — would meet with Watson to determine her interest. If she is amenable to serving in the interim position for a year beyond the current contract, the board could consider a vote to officially suspend the presidential search. 

If that happens, the search would resume again in the fall, with the goal of hiring a new president by July 2022. 

Watson’s contract, which was signed in November, was for one year and contained a 60-day clause that would allow her to resume duties of the vice president of finance and administrative services if the board of trustees picked a new permanent president. 

Before coming to NWC in 2014, Watson served as interim president at Miles Community College in Montana from May 2013 to January 2014.