Spartan Daily - Serving San Jose State University since 1934

Issue date: 5/7/08 Section: News

Media Credit: Courtesy photo

Jon Whitmore is searching for a new job. He's currently one of three candidates to replace Don Kassing as president of the university, but SJSU isn't his only option.

He is also a candidate for the open chancellorship position at Louisiana State University, according to representatives of the university. He was a finalist for the presidency at Portland State University until mid-April, after resigning from the presidency at Texas Tech University in January, a position he held for the last five years.

Kent Wilkinson, a mass communications professor at Texas Tech, has known Whitmore since he was a graduate student at the University of Texas at Austin in 1993, when Whitmore was a dean of fine arts.

"He's kind of a quiet guy," Wilkinson said, "but he's a solid administrator."

Bill Dean, the executive vice president of the Texas Tech Alumni Association, also spoke fondly of Whitmore.

"He's a first class gentleman … he's well liked by the faculty," he said.

Dean also said Whitmore is the type of leader who delegates to other campus administrators and works well with others.

There are questions about the timing of Whitmore's resignation at Texas Tech. The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools placed the university on accreditation probation for one year in mid-December, according to a Dec. 20 statement.

"The timing would suggest that there might have been some pressure," Wilkinson said.

Dean had a different view of Whitmore's resignation.

"Part of the reason is we have a new chancellor," he said, "and he wanted to raise enrollment [at Texas Tech] to 40,000. I think Dr. Whitmore didn't feel comfortable with that goal."

"I don't think it had anything to do with performance," Dean added.

One of Whitmore's goals, Wilkinson said, was to work toward increasing Texas Tech's research capacity.

"He developed an arts and performance program that has had a positive impact on the university," Wilkinson said.

Whitmore also sought to expand research funding, Wilkinson said, adding that the number of endowed chairs and professors increased, along with research funding at Texas Tech.

Shortly before the announcement of his candidacy for the SJSU presidency, Whitmore withdrew his name for the job at Portland State, according to a news release from the university.

One reason he may have dropped his name from consideration from the job at Portland State involves the university's resources, said Di Saunders, director of communications for the Oregon University System.

The state of Oregon has not always been kind with resources for its universities, she said, a factor that may have led to his choice.

"The only thing that we heard was that Oregon wasn't a good fit for him," Saunders said about Whitmore's removal from contention. "I don't think Jon Whitmore wanted to take a job where there wasn't enough resources."

The official reason for his choice, she said, involved the university's location.

Although there are still nine candidates for LSU chancellorship, Whitmore was one of two candidates selected for a background check by the university's search committee, said Charles Zewe, vice president for communications and external affairs for the LSU System.

Information beyond that, he said, could not be released.

"It's not like a horse race we are watching here," Zewe said of the search.

He added that the university is not expected to name its chancellor until early summer. The CSU Board of Trustees is expected to name Kassing's replacement next week after interviewing all three candidates.


Click here for live coverage of Whitmore's visit

Click here to read Whitmore's profile.

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