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POSTED AT 10:27 PM ON Sep. 25, 2012  (UPDATED AT 10:27 PM ON Sep. 25, 2012)

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With the sudden resignation of IU-Kokomo Chancellor Michael Harris last week, there are three upcoming changes for the high-level administrator positions in the IU system.

Only two replacements are currently being sought.

Harris’ resignation was effective immediately. Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs Sue Sciame-Giesecke is serving as interim chancellor.

“Having accomplished a variety of goals at IU-Kokomo, I have made a personal decision to seek new opportunities,” Harris said in a press release.

John Applegate, executive vice president of University regional affairs, said he predicts Sciame-Giesecke will do a terrific job as interim chancellor, and no decision regarding a search for a replacement has been made.

“We have a lot of things to think about,” he said. “There are benefits to doing something soon, but there are also benefits of waiting before searching.”

The search for former IU-East Richmond Chancellor Nasser Paydar, who resigned after accepting the position of executive vice chancellor of IU-Purdue University Indianapolis, and former IU-South Bend Chancellor Una Mae Reck, who retired after 10 years of service, is in full swing.

Paydar started his new position at IUPUI June 15. Since then, Laurence Richards, IU-East executive vice chancellor for academic affairs and professor of informatics and management, has served as interim chancellor.

Harris was originally selected to serve as the chair of the search committee at IU-East, but Vice President for Engagement Bill Stephan volunteered to replace him.
“Each of our regional campuses plays a vital role in the community it serves,” Applegate said. “That is especially true of IU-East, given that the majority of its 6,000 living alumni remain in the area, enriching the culture and economy with their skills and knowledge.”

Reck, who retired because of IU’s mandatory retirement for high-level administrators at age 75, will remain in his position as chancellor until June.

IU-Northwest Gary Chancellor William Lowe is chair of the search committee, and Applegate said he is confident the group will find a strong candidate.

“IU-South Bend has strong traditions of academic excellence, dynamic campus life, civic responsibility and a global engagement,” Applegate said. “I know the committee takes seriously its responsibility to maintain and enhance those traditions.”

Search committees for both positions were formed in late August and have already begun consulting their respective communities for qualities and priorities to look for. Both committees hope to have a new chancellor begin his or her term by July 2013.

“I’m really gratified by the level of interest and enthusiasm both these campuses have shown in this search,” Applegate said.

Because the two campuses are so different in size, Applegate said the qualities the committees will be looking for in candidates will vary. However, he said there are basic qualities every chancellor must possess to be considered.

“The one thing you can’t make if you don’t already have it is energy and creativity,” he said. “We also need somebody that works well with a wide variety of people, someone that is a strong advocate for their campus, but at the same time can work well with peer institutions and with the University as a whole.”