Pitt announces committee that will select next chancellor

Board of Trustees Chair Doug Browning appointed on Tuesday the search committee and the search firm that will find Pitt’s new chancellor, according to a media release from the University. The 26-person committee includes trustees, faculty and administration as well as Danielle Floyd, the president of the Student Government Board.

Chancellor Patrick Gallagher announced in April that he will leave his post this summer after nine years on the job. 

Eva Tansky Blum, the former chair of the Board of Trustees, will lead the committee. She also chaired the search for Gallagher in 2013. Anantha Shekhar, the senior vice chancellor for health sciences and dean of the School of Medicine, will serve as vice chair.

Browning chose Storbeck Search, an executive search firm, to partner with the search committee. The firm also supported the 2013 search for Gallagher. 

Pitt also asked students to fill out an online survey to provide feedback that would be helpful to the search.

“I really would encourage students to voice their feedback directly through filling out the feedback forms or going to in-person forums that they’re going to host where anyone in the University comes — students, staff, faculty members,” Floyd said. “[I am] also hoping to connect with our assembly members to get feedback from them, to reach out to student organizations … in terms of what qualities you’re looking for in a new chancellor.”

Members of the committee include:

• Eva Tansky Blum, trustee
• Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for the health sciences and dean of the School of Medicine
• SaLisa Berrien, trustee
• Timothy Billiar, executive vice president and chief scientific officer at UPMC 
• Kenyon Bonner, vice provost for student affairs
• Bruce Childers, dean of the School of Computing and Information
• Vaughn Clagette, trustee
• James P. Covert, trustee
• Lawrence Feick, interim associate dean of the College of Business Administration and professor in the Katz Graduate School of Business
• Danielle Floyd, president of the Student Government Board
• Nicola Foote, dean of the Honors College
• Sarah Gaffen, professor in the Division of Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology
• John Gismondi, trustee
• Jeffrey Guterman, professor and division chair of communication and the arts at Pitt-Bradford
• Patricia Horoho, trustee
• Christine Jackson, executive director of personnel and operations in the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
• Larry Merlo, trustee
• Debora Miller, vice dean of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences
• Varbi Mridha, vice president for finance for the Graduate and Professional Student Government
• Valerie Njie, trustee
• Lara Putnam, professor in the Department of History
• Bryan Salesky, trustee
• Hari Sastry, senior vice chancellor and chief financial officer
• Amy Seybert, dean of the School of Pharmacy
• Jem Spectar, president of Pitt-Johnstown
• Peter Varischetti, trustee