Bob Caslen’s first major challenge as president of USC: find a top academic officer

Incoming University of South Carolina President Robert Caslen isn’t an academic.

His resume lists a Masters of Business Administration, a degree in industrial engineering and five years as superintendent of U.S. Military Academy at West Point, but he has never been a professor, a dean or a university department chair, according to his resume.

So if Caslen wants to fulfill his promise to promote “academic excellence,” he is going to need a career educator.

One of Caslen’s first major challenges as USC president will be finding a provost. The provost is the university’s top academic officer, responsible for developing curriculum, setting faculty hiring policies and maintaining accreditation, according to USC’s website.

“That’s the biggest hire you make other than the president,” said Trustee Charles Williams. “They basically run the academics of the school.”

It’s also a high-paying position, former Provost Joan Gabel was paid $400,000 per year before she left, according to S.C. Department of Administration records.

It’s unclear when the search process for a new provost will begin, but “the sooner the better,” Caslen told The State on Thursday.

The search committee for the new provost will be led by two faculty members, who have not yet been chosen, Caslen said.

“I want to make sure this is not somebody I’m going to pick,” Caslen said. “It’s somebody the faculty will recommend to me.”

Although Gabel accepted a new job as the president of the University of Minnesota in December, USC’s trustees were waiting to select a president before looking for a provost, given the two positions must work together closely.

“It wouldn’t be fair to put a provost in and then get a president,” said Williams, who approves the provost along with the board of trustees.

Rather, Brendan Kelly — who had been appointed interim president before the USC board voted to hire Caslen — named Tayloe Harding, the former dean of the School of Music, as interim provost.

It’s doubly important Caslen have a highly qualified provost given the student and faculty complaints regarding Caslen’s lack of background in academia and his lack of a doctoral degree, said Lyric Swinton, a student who helped organize protests against Caslen’s candidacy.