State Sen. John Thrasher (R-St. Augustine) remains among the finalists for Florida State University president after the search committee voted Monday. That’s despite overwhelming public opposition to his candidacy at the meeting.
The FSU Board of Trustees plans to interview the four finalists Tuesday morning. At Monday’s meeting, several faculty and students voiced their desire to move forward with only the three candidates who have academic administration experience. The FSU Faculty Senate also voted unanimously to support the three "academic candidates" but not Thrasher.
And echoing several speakers' support for former West Virginia University Provost Michele Wheatly, FSU music doctoral candidate Joshua Mills told the committee, "You have not listened to our concerns, you have not heeded our warnings, and I have no faith at this point that a few kind words about Dr. Wheatly will mean anything to you as you increasingly march toward what is looking like a fait acompli."
English Department Chair and search committee member Eric Walker said the campus has spoken.
“I can’t in good conscience—I think it would be a form of irresponsibility; I think it would even be a form of professional malfeasance to send all four of these forward," he said.
But the committee voted to forward Thrasher anyway, with several members mentioning his fundraising ability or his recommendation by former FSU President Sandy D’Alemberte.
In an online survey following last week’s candidate forums conducted by FSU search consultant Alberto Pimintel, Thrasher received an 11 percent favorability rating. The highest-scoring candidate was Wheatly at 91 percent.
The FSU Board of Trustees plans to interview Thrasher, Wheatly, Colorado State University System Chancellor Michael Martin, and University of Alabama VP for Research and Development Richard Marchase starting at 8 Tuesday. They will meet to confer almost immediately following the final interview.
