Welcome to the Elms College Presidential Transition website! 

This is an important moment in the history of Elms College, as we seek a new president who can lead us forward while honoring our distinctive spirit and identity, helping us secure and advance our ability to offer a first-rate education to women and men who will make a profound impact on their communities and the world. 

We are committed to providing regular updates throughout the search process, and we invite you to check this site for further news and information as the search progresses.  We trust you will understand that in searches of this nature, some information must be kept confidential to protect the privacy of the candidates.  We will keep you as informed as possible.

We hope we can count on you to help with this critical process by offering your insights; please address your email to Wendy Hammerle, special assistant to the presidential search committee, at hammelew@elms.edu.

It is an honor to serve Elms College, and I thank you in advance for sharing your time and perspectives with us as we move forward together into a bright and productive future. 

Sincerely,                                                        

Judge Mary E. Hurley, ‘72
Chair, Presidential Search Committee

Update
November 2008

November 4, 2008

Significant progress is being made by the Elms College Presidential
Search Committee, according to Committee Chair Mary Hurley '72. At a
teleconference today, the committee learned that more than 40 candidates
have expressed interest in the position and are currently being screened
by the recruiting firm of Witt/Kieffer.

The committee is extremely pleased by this response and also by the
activity and enthusiasm demonstrated by the Elms College community and
the public at large. The committee hosted an Open Forum on campus Oct.
23 to garner input from faculty, staff and administrators. The
committee has also received valuable recommendations and comments from
the public.

The committee continues to welcome input regarding the selection of the
next President of Elms College. Comments and suggestions may be sent to
the Special Assistant to the Presidential Search Committee, Wendy
Hammerle, at: hammerlew@elms.edu.

October 10, 2008

The Elms College Presidential Search Committee is pleased to report that the recruiting process is going well and that the committee has received a significant number of responses from interested applicants.

The committee, chaired by Judge Mary E. Hurley ‘72, met via teleconference today to discuss the status of the recruiting process led by consulting firm Witt/Kieffer.  The consultants reported that they will now begin a screening process, after which the Search Committee will begin interviewing potential candidates. 

In an effort to elicit additional input from the Elms College community, the committee plans to host an open forum on campus Oct. 23 for faculty, staff and administrators.  A written survey is being prepared for students. 

The committee emphasized that it is encouraged by the entire search process as evidenced by the positive responses to date.   

September 17, 2008

The Elms College Presidential Search Committee received a detailed description of the search process, set a schedule of meetings and interviews and discussed the Presidential Job Profile at its meeting last evening.

The committee, chaired by Judge Mary E.Hurley ‘72, met with search consultant Robin Mamlet of Witt/Kieffer, who spelled out the steps that the committee will take to attract and choose a candidate.  Mamlet assisted the group in setting a schedule of teleconferences, meetings, interviews and campus visits for candidates - a schedule that is expected to conclude in February 2009, when a candidate will be selected.

The committee also fine-tuned language in the Presidential Job Profile based on input from the Elms College Board of Trustees, which met earlier in the day.  The profile describes the qualities and qualifications the College is seeking in its new president. 

The committee also affirmed that the advertisement it had approved in August was placed in the Chronicle of Higher Education, and that a new Presidential Search page has been launched on the Elms College web site, which can be found at www.elms.edu.

September 15, 2008

I am delighted to provide this first posting, which will bring you up to date on where we are now, and how you can help.

Search Progress
The Elms College Presidential Search Committee has been meeting since May and is off to a great start.

After a careful process of screening and interviewing executive recruiting firms this summer, the Committee has selected the executive search firm, Witt/Kieffer, the nation's largest and most experienced search firm specializing in higher education, to assist in the search for the college’s 10th president. Witt/Keiffer’s strategic yet personal approach aligns well with the mission and needs of Elms College.

Our search will be led by Robin Mamlet, senior consultant at Witt/Kieffer. Joining her is Jean Dowdall and Elizabeth Bohan. For more information on our search consultant team, please go to About Witt/Kieffer.

To begin their process of getting to know the College of Our Lady of the Elms, members of the Witt/Kieffer team visited campus in August and met with the Presidential Search Committee and with faculty, students, and senior staff. The team returns to campus again for follow-up conversations and open forums for faculty, staff and students on September 17 and 18. The information gleaned from these discussions will inform their understanding of the College and their identification of prospective candidates.

Please give us your input!
The Presidential Search Committee is committed to an inclusive and thorough approach to Elms College’s search for its next president. We welcome your input and suggestions regarding the qualifications you feel will be needed in the next president of Elms College. If you would like to submit your thoughts, please send them to Wendy Hammerle, special assistant to the presidential search committee, at hammerlew@elms.edu. We promise to respond!

To submit a nomination
Know someone you think should be a candidate for president of the Elms? Please write to our consultants at ElmsPres@wittkieffer.com and they will follow up.

Search timeline
Our search consultants will be spending the fall learning about Elms College and recruiting candidates for us. The search committee will begin our review of candidates in late fall. Our hope is to bring finalists to campus in the winter, and to make a selection as soon after as possible.

Next steps
As we progress through the search process we will keep you informed with updates posted on this Elms College Presidential Transition website. Please check back to monitor our progress.

I will close this first posting by thanking you for your interest and your input.

Sincerely,                                                        

Judge Mary E. Hurley, ‘72
Chair, Presidential Search Committee