USC’s next president must be the right ‘cultural fit,’ Pastides says

As the University of South Carolina searches for a new president, Interim President Harris Pastides has some advice: find the right fit.

Pastides, speaking Thursday to a meeting of USC’s presidential search committee, called on the search committee to find a candidate who is comfortable in a crowd and who communicates well with students, lawmakers, local business leaders, city officials, donors, alumni, parents and employees.

“What I may suggest is a match between the people who you are asked to consider and the university,” Pastides said. “What is the cultural fit between the individuals brought to you and the challenges of the job?”

It’s less important for the candidate to have the perfect resume or to be from the Palmetto State, Pastides said, noting he came to South Carolina in 1998. Pastides — who said he will reach out to people he believes are qualified and ask them to apply for the job — said USC’s ideal candidate will need to have experience in higher education. However, Pastides advised the search committee members, made up largely of board of trustees members, to not fixate too much on a candidate’s resume.

“Look for life skills. Look for people who can think on their feet. Look for people who inspire you,” Pastides said. “You will not find an unblemished record unless the (candidate) hasn’t done anything.”

Pastides, echoing the sentiments of board members who have spoken publicly after former President Robert Caslen’s abrupt resignation last month, said he is confident recent scandals will not stand in the way of USC moving forward.

“Don’t ever let yourself say ‘who would want the job of the president of the UofSC?’ The answer is many, many people,” said Pastides, who retired as USC president in 2019 after 11 years in the position.

Caslen resigned after he admitted plagiarizing a section of a graduation speech he delivered in early May. His selection in 2019 to succeed Pastides as president became controversial after Gov. Henry McMaster pushed the board to vote on Caslen, whom McMaster supported. McMaster’s involvement was scrutinized by USC’s accrediting agency as a potential “undue influence.”

During the Thursday meeting, attorney and funeral home owner I.S. Leevy Johnson also offered advice for how USC could avoid the same issues it faced in the 2019 presidential search.

Leevy Johnson, an advisor to USC’s presidential search, has served on multiple search committees, including when he was a board member of South Carolina State University and when he helped USC search for a law school dean.

A university president, especially of a school as large as USC, needs to excel at raising money, Leevy Johnson said. Part of that comes from having the charisma and vision to convince donors to contribute, he said.

Leevy Johnson also addressed what he called an “elephant in the room,” the perception that political influences played too great of a role in the previous presidential search. He noted that while USC will be studying candidates, potential future presidents will also be studying USC and its recent controversies around the last presidential search.

“When you get down to the final candidate, you’ll have to convince that candidate it won’t happen in the future,” Leevy Johnson said of political influence in the presidential search.

This story was originally published June 10, 2021 at 1:31 PM.