COLUMBIA, S.C. — On Friday, the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees Presidential Search Committee met for the first time. The group will review applicants and pick who will become the new president of the university.
"None of us as an individual really knows what it means to be president of the University of South Carolina," said Thad Westbrook, Chairman of the University of South Carolina Board of Trustees. "Collectively, we can come together, we can see what's important for the university and see different perspectives and hear each other."
Westbrook said the committee will select three qualifying candidates for the position, and the chair will determine who will be the president.
"The presidential candidate search committee is charged, as you heard, with following a process to provide a group of not less than three finalists to the board," Westbrook said. "According to state law, the board is responsible for selecting the president after the committee has completed its work."
The group is made up of eight of the school's trustees, five faculty members, and the president of the Student Government Association at the university.
The committee is tasked with finding the replacement for former USC President, Bob Caslen. Caslen abruptly resigned after he gave his graduation speech at the school's 2021 commencement ceremony.
Caslen plagiarized part of his address and referred to the school by the wrong name. He currently is working as an advisor for the school, until the end of the month.
At their first meeting, the committee was told their responsibilities. They were also told what they do must remain confidential.
"The chair can be removed, the committee members can be removed for not complying with policy, for not maintaining confidentiality," Westbrook said.
Terry Parham is the university's chief attorney. He said the Freedom of Information Act does not allow any members to disclose any information about the applicants.
"The F-O-I says that the materials gathered and the identity of individuals who've applied for a position, any public position, can be maintained confidentially," Parham said.
He also adds the exception to the rule is when three finalists have been selected.
Diversity and inclusion was also brought up during the meeting. Julian Williams is the Vice President of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at USC.
Williams said it's up to the committee to ensure there is a diverse pool of applicants.
“When something matters to us, we make sure we succeed in it," Williams said. "Whether it's our financial metrics, whether it's what we do from a student success standpoint, whether it's our academic success metrics, we make sure we achieve those goals. And I think as we look around, look and think about equity and inclusion that has to matter that much to us as well."
Harris Pastides, who led the school for over a decade before retiring in 2019, is currently serving as the university's interim president.
The committee is set to meet again on June 10.