Mission Key in Chancellor Search

The Boston Globe reports that the list of candidates vying for the position of UMass Boston’s permanent chancellor have narrowed.According to the Globe, the number of applicants has been paired down to roughly a dozen, all of who have had interviews with the chancellor search committee this month.UMass trustee and search committee chief Stacey Rainey told the Globe that passion and commitment to the university’s mission are key attributes she seeks in a candidate.She continues that these qualities have been evident in several of those interviewed, “so, we’re very pleased,” she said.Dr. Steve Schwartz, faculty council representative to the UMass Board of Trustees, said that faculty are requesting that the final candidates make visits to the harbor campus this spring for public assessment.Rainey said the possibility of such visits are likely.

Scholarships Trump Presidential Partying

Both UMass President Jack Wilson and former UMass Boston Chancellor Jo Ann Gora have made the decision to scale back their spring presidential inauguration ceremonies, reports The Boston Globe.According to the Globe, Gora, who vacated her position at UMB last August, is slated to be formally installed as the head of Indiana’s Ball State University next month. The Globe reports that Gora announced in January that she has decided to forgo a large celebration, instead allowing for the formation of a new scholarship fund.In step with the former chancellor, President Wilson has reduced his May 12 investiture into office from a daylong event to an evening at Boston’s Symphony Hall in order to allow for more money for student scholarships.Wilson will be inaugurated as the University of Massachusetts’ twenty-fifth president in a celebration that is scheduled to include the first annual University of Massachusetts honors celebration bestowing Senator Edward Kennedy with UMass’ President’s Medal, as well as a performance by the Boston Pops.

Report Finds Law School Not a Burden to the State

The University of Massachusetts released an independent review team report on March 10 with findings that suggested that the university does in fact have the capacity to create a public law school without accessing state funds.The team, formed in consultation with the state Board of Higher Education, further found that the creation of such a school would address “a high need” for public service lawyers.A proposal is now pending before the Board of Higher Education that would merge Southern New England School of Law with UMass Dartmouth, thus creating the state’s first public law school.The review team states of the cost, “in our opinion, the merger of the School of Law and UMass Dartmouth presents very little financial risk for the University.”In a press release, UMass President Jack Wilson called the reviewing efforts “thorough, impartial, [and] diligent.”He continued, “Nationally recognized legal education experts agree with our position that there is a need for a public-service law school and that the school can operate without state funds…It is time to go forward and open the doors of the University of Massachusetts School of Law.”The Board of Higher Education is expected to decide on the proposal this month.Boston’s private law schools have emerged as chief opponents of the proposal.