USC names Pastides interim president, starts search for Caslen’s replacement
Two years after leaving office, Harris Pastides will again be the president of the University of South Carolina, albeit in a temporary role.
USC’s board of trustees approved making Pastides interim president in a unanimous vote after the school spent a week without a president following Robert Caslen’s resignation.
Before the full board cast a vote, the board of trustees’ governance committee unanimously approved naming Pastides as interim president.
“It is so important we have a year marked by stability as we begin the search for a new president,” Pastides said at the board meeting after being named interim president. “It is important that this year be stable, and I don’t mean dull or stagnant, just steady. I will work toward that goal everyday.”
Pastides’ salary will be $750,000 per year.
Caslen resigned officially May 12 after a graduation speech in which he mistakenly congratulated graduates of the “University of California” and admitted to plagiarizing several sentences.
When Caslen’s resignation was announced, USC initially said Pastides would be serving as the interim president. However, after being pressed about the legality of naming an interim president without a public vote, USC later said Pastides would not be officially named president until Friday meeting.
Since a new presidential search was announced, USC students, faculty, staff and alumni have been calling for the board of trustees to conduct its presidential search differently than in 2019. The 2019 search that placed Caslen in charge of the 51,000+ student system sparked protests, a vote of no confidence from Faculty Senate and a formal inquiry from USC’s accreditation body.
“Despite the challenges of the past year, our community has proven yet again that our university stands resilient in moments of adversity and change,” Pastides said in the speech.
The board of trustees gives final approval to candidates, but the specifics of the search are run by a presidential search committee, which largely includes board of trustee members, but also students and faculty, according to USC’s policy .
Per USC policy, the presidential search committee must be made up of:
- Eight board of trustee members
USC Aiken Faculty Senate Chair Alexandra Roach
Palmetto College Campuses Faculty Chair Ernest Jenkins
USC Columbia Faculty Senate Chair Mark Cooper
Chair of the USC Upstate Faculty Senate Lisa Johnson
Chair of the USC Beaufort Faculty Senate Jayne Violette
USC Columbia’s student body president Alex Harrell
The board of trustee members on the committee include: Thad Westbrook (chair), Alex English, Brian Harlan, Leah Moody, Emma Morris, C. Dorn Smith III, Eugene Warr and Mack Whittle.
The committee also has several non-voting members including: James Bennett, the vice chair of USC’s Educational Foundation; Hossein Haj-Hariri, the dean of the College of Engineering and Computing; Lou Kennedy, a USC alumna and the owner of Nephron Pharmaceuticals; Robin Roberts, the president of USC’s Alumni Association; David Seaton, an advisor to the board of trustees who previously chaired lucrative fundraising campaigns; and Lauren Smith, the director of International Student Services.
The secretary for USC’s board of trustees will also act as secretary for the presidential search committee, according to USC policies.
“The committee includes a diverse set of people and a diverse set of viewpoints,” Westbrook said. “The people will be united in their charge and their desire to attract the best possible candidates to the search for USC’s next president.”
This story was originally published May 21, 2021 at 11:52 AM.