The President of the University of Colorado

Bruce Benson has been named by the Board of Regents of the University of Colorado to be the new president of that institution, frequently, and appropriately, referred to as the flagship institution in the state of Colorado. I feel that the selection falls short for the following reasons.

One, such a selection suggests that the people of Colorado are willing to give at least the appearance of valuing low taxes over providing excellence in higher education. Surely our citizens do not wish to continue to provide almost the lowest (that is, 49th) level of support for higher education of any state in the nation. We are a relatively wealthy state, one that can afford to educate its citizenry, and this is indeed important. Accordingly, we should embrace a commitment to quality, and this should be apparent to the community, to the faculty, and, most of all, to the students. The selection of someone with superior competence in fundraising but no academic background in higher education does not indicate such a commitment.

Second, the president is the most important employee of the University, and as such he/she should qualify as likely to be one who can best guide the university in the pursuit of higher education and can best speak to the community about it. He should embody a passion for learning, for the quest for ideas, for the search for truth. While it is possible that Mr. Benson may prove to be such a choice, his resume does not suggest that degree of excellence or that kind of life experience. The Regents have not succeeded in persuading the community of the superiority of his qualifications.