Board of Regents vote against allowing interim to run for NKU president

In a specially called meeting on Jan. 9, the Board of Regents voted against the inclusion of Northern Kentucky University’s interim president as a presidential candidate in the official search that is to take place over the coming months.

Chair of the board Richard Boehne presented the resolution, which determined that the interim would be permitted to apply for the position of president and, if selected, could serve as NKU’s next permanent president. The board voted 8-3 against the resolution by roll call, concluding that the interim would not be eligible for the presidential candidate pool.

Regents Boehne, Nathan Smith, Kara Williams, Michael Baranowski, Ashley Himes, Daniel Myers, Ken Perry and Brad Zapp voted no. Regents Andrá Ward, Cori Henderson and Elizabeth Thompson voted yes. Boehne said that the vote was an important step on an often debated issue, and personally believes it is best to separate the positions of interim president and official president.

The Board of Regents has not decided on who the interim will be at the moment and the number of presidential candidates remains undisclosed. Boehne hoped that the board would be able to make a decision by next week and an announcement at the upcoming Jan. 18 meeting.