A Message from Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C. – Provost Search Committee
December 23, 2021
Dear Members of the Notre Dame Community,
I wish to once again offer my profound gratitude to Marie Lynn Miranda as she concludes her tenure as Provost, and to Vice President and Senior Associate Provost Chris Maziar for her willingness to serve as Interim Provost, effective December 31. We are now beginning the search for a new Provost. As I said in my recent letter to campus, we will strive to conduct a thorough but expeditious search.
The process for choosing a Provost as defined by the Academic Articles (Article II/Section1/The Provost) begins with the election by the Academic Council of five of its elected faculty representatives and one of its student representatives to a search committee chaired by the President. The President may then appoint up to three members of the regular faculty and one student “in order to ensure that a broad range of views and perspectives is represented on the committee.”
On Wednesday, December 15, the Academic Council elected the following members to the search committee:
Therese Cory, John and Jean Oesterle Associate Professor of Thomistic Studies, Department of Philosophy
La Donna L. Forsgren, Rev. Thomas J. McDonagh, C.S.C., Associate Professor of Film, Television, and Theatre
Richard W. Garnett, Paul J. Schierl/Fort Howard Corporation Professor of Law
Christopher Kolda, Professor, Department of Physics
Ramachandran Ramanan, Professor, Department of Accountancy
Allan Njomo, Student Body President
I then appointed the following faculty colleagues and a graduate student to serve on the committee:
Mary Flannery, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Studies of the College of Arts and Letters, and Teaching Professor, Department of Economics
Edward Maginn, Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Engineering
Maura A. Ryan, Vice President and Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs, John Cardinal O’Hara, C.S.C., Associate Professor of Christian Ethics
Sarah Pate, Ph.D. candidate in Chemical Engineering
With this committee, we will undertake a national and international search for our next Provost. Among our first tasks will be to describe the qualities of the ideal candidate for Provost at this time in Notre Dame’s history.
As we reflect on and discuss this question, we will seek your input in a variety of ways. First, we will set up two virtual listening sessions early in the spring semester, one for faculty and staff, and one for students, to hear your thoughts. We will follow up soon with the dates and times of these listening sessions. Secondly, for those unable to participate in the listening sessions, or for those who might prefer to share their ideas in writing, we invite you to submit your thoughts, including the names of anyone you wish to place in nomination for the Provost position, to the search committee at this email address, presprovostsearch@nd.edu. Finally, we invite you to communicate directly with any member of the search committee listed above, who will pass on your comments to the full committee.
Informed by our reflection and your perspectives, we will prepare a position prospectus. That prospectus will be shared with prospective candidates and those from whom we seek recommendations.
I conclude by thanking members of the committee for their willingness to serve, and each of you for your participation in this important process. May the peace and joy of this holy season be with you, now and throughout the coming year.
Sincerely,
Rev. John I. Jenkins, C.S.C.
President