Letter to the Seton Hall Community, March 4, 2010

Dear Members of the Seton Hall Community,

As I have done several times before, I once again want to share with you an update on the status of our search for the next president of Seton Hall University.

In my last communication I reported that the search and screen committee would meet on February 16 to review the entire applicant pool and decide on semifinalists to interview. The committee met as scheduled and has selected the semifinalists to interview.

At this time, the search committee is conducting off-site interviews with those semifinalists. The CVs, biographies and cover letters of these individuals have been reviewed by the search committee, and each of them has also been interviewed in person by our search firm, Isaacson, Miller. After the search committee has interviewed the semifinalists, Isaacson, Miller, will conduct extensive reference checks on each candidate.

I anticipate the University will welcome finalists to campus in late March for one full day of interviews with students, faculty, administrators, staff, the priest community and other key Seton Hall constituencies. After meeting with each finalist, you will have the opportunity to provide feedback. I will inform you of the dates of the on-campus interviews at least one week in advance and will also provide detailed information about each finalist at that time.

We are now nine months into the search process. I want to thank you for your patience, your suggestions and your input as we have moved forward in the search for our 20th president. As we enter into this next phase of the search, I encourage you to participate in the interview sessions and submit your feedback regarding each finalist.

Sincerely,

Joseph P. LaSala
Chair, Presidential Search and Screen Committee
Member, Board of Regents
Seton Hall University

Letter to the Seton Hall Community, January 28, 2010

Dear Members of the Seton Hall Community,

With the new academic semester upon us, I once again want to share with you an update on the status of our search for the next president of Seton Hall University.

The search and screen committee met on January 19 to review the progress of the search. The meeting began with a discussion of the networking strategy employed by Isaacson, Miller - the executive search firm whose services we have retained - to reach a national pool of potential candidates. The committee also discussed the continued outreach efforts that will be made going forward.

Most of the meeting was spent reviewing candidate applications received thus far. At the next committee meeting, scheduled for February 16, the committee will review the full candidate pool and decide on the individuals they would like to interview.

After interviewing candidates, the committee will recommend finalists for on-campus interviews and meetings with the University community. This will allow the Seton Hall community to have an additional opportunity to provide input in the selection process. It is too early to set dates for the on-campus interviews and meetings; however, I will give the community advance notice of these interviews once they are set.

I will continue to keep you updated as we move forward in the search process.

Sincerely,

Joseph P. LaSala
Chair, Presidential Search and Screen Committee
Member, Board of Regents
Seton Hall University

Letter to the Seton Hall Community, December 10, 2009

Dear Members of the Seton Hall Community,

I am pleased to write to you with an update on the status of the presidential search. As you know the Presidential Search and Screen Committee is charged by our Board of Regents to identify the optimal candidates for the presidency of Seton Hall University. To that end, we have engaged the services of an executive search firm, Isaacson, Miller.

Last week, on December 3, the committee met. The agenda included a detailed status report from Isaacson, Miller, as well as a broad discussion of the ongoing search process to date. I can report that we are on track in the process.

The committee will meet again on January 19, 2010. That session will include a presentation of preliminary candidates, on paper. Some of these candidates will have been screened, via telephone, by Isaacson, Miller. The firm will share insights gleaned from initial networking, review models for the ideal candidate and receive input from committee members about additional candidates to be interviewed.

Then, on February 18, the Search and Screen Committee will convene again to review the full candidate pool. By then, all of these candidates will have been interviewed in person by Isaacson, Miller, who will provide us with impressions and recommendations. On February 18, the committee will decide which candidates to interview.

This is a summary of our process to date and for the immediate future. Please note that the committee has also received comments and suggestions submitted by the Seton Hall community, for which we are most appreciative.

On behalf of the committee, I wish you all a joyous Christmas season. I will provide further updates along the way, and I encourage you to visit www.shu.edu/presidentialsearch periodically to remain as informed as possible on the search process.

Sincerely yours,

Joseph P. LaSala
Chair, Presidential Search and Screen Committee
Member, Board of Regents
Seton Hall University

Video Message from Search Chair Joseph LaSala

Joseph LaSala, J.D. '72

Joseph LaSala, J.D. '72, chair of the Presidential Search and Screen Committee, discusses the national search for Seton Hall University's new president, the qualifications of the new president and how this process will reaffirm our values and traditions while moving Seton Hall forward.

 

Letter to the Seton Hall Community, September 10, 2009

Dear Members of the Seton Hall Community, 
 
As you know, some weeks ago I announced to you that I had been appointed to serve as the chair of the Presidential Search and Screen Committee. 
 
After the solicitation of much input and after careful deliberation, the Chair of the Board of Regents has appointed the remainder of the committee membership. Dr. Francis Lazarus, a fellow regent and the former president of Dallas University, will serve as the vice chair. Other regents who were also appointed are Ms. Kent Manahan, Mrs. Donna O'Brien, and Monsignor James Cafone, who is also a trustee. 
 
Additional committee members are Dr. Mary Balkun, Dr. Karen Boroff, Mr. Albert Cooley, Jr., Professor John Jacobi, Esq., Dr. King Mott, Ms. Rosario Reyes and Mr. Steve Stoute. 
 
All of these individuals are knowledgeable about Seton Hall and committed to its Catholic educational mission. Each is drawn from a particular university constituency, and a few belong to more than one. They have been selected in order to provide broad representation from across the community and will act in the University's best interests to recommend those candidates who would best serve the University. The inaugural meeting of the committee was held on September 3, 2009. 
 
Also present at the meeting were the consultants of the executive search firm, Isaacson Miller (Boston, MA), whose services were retained to support and guide the work of the search and screen committee. Additionally, Susan McGarry Basso, Associate Vice President for Human Resources, was present and will serve as staff support to the committee. 
 
Isaacson Miller, founded in 1982, has significant expertise in nationwide searches for a wide variety of organizations, including leading universities and mission-driven institutions. More detailed information on the firm is available at http://imsearch.com. 
 
Biographies and photographs of all members of the search committee will soon be available on the Presidential Transition web site. 
 
I look forward to updating you again in the future on the progress of the search. 
 
Joseph P. LaSala
Chair, Presidential Search and Screen Committee
Member, Board of Regents
Seton Hall University
www.shu.edu/presidentialsearch
info@shu.edu

 
Letter to the Seton Hall Community, July 27, 2009

Dear Members of the Seton Hall Community, 
 
As we begin the search for Seton Hall University's new president, the Board of Regents wishes to keep you informed and involved as the process moves forward. 
 
The Chair of our Board of Regents, Kurt Borowsky, has appointed me to serve as Chair of the Presidential Search and Screen Committee. I am most proud to accept this position and will do everything possible to complete this critical task properly and in a timely manner. As we reach key milestones and decision-points in the search, you will receive direct communications from the Committee through me. 
 
A Leadership Statement is being developed by the Board of Regents. The Leadership Statement will serve as our guiding vision for the qualities we seek in our next president. We are drawing on ideas and suggestions submitted by members of the Seton Hall community, and we thank those who have taken the time to provide their input so far. 
 
The Presidential Search and Screen Committee will be appointed by the Board of Regents in the upcoming weeks. Committee members will be chosen from among the constituencies of the University community. Further, a search firm will be chosen to assist us. 
 
You will, therefore, hear more from me when the Leadership Statement is approved and when the committee and search firm are both in place. 

In the meantime, please bookmark the Presidential Transition Web site, www.shu.edu/presidentialsearch. The site will be updated regularly and serve as a central place to submit questions or suggestions about the search and to obtain official information. 
 
Joseph P. LaSala
Chair, Presidential Search and Screen Committee
Member, Board of Regents
Seton Hall University
www.shu.edu/presidentialsearch
info@shu.edu