Coaching finalists may be made public

[johnnyredshoes]

This is dumb. May compromise the search. Get some patience people!!

 

 

Published Thursday, December 11, 2003

http://www.theindependent.com/stories/1211...nalists11.shtml

 

Football finalists could be named

 

State law may force NU to make process public

 

LINCOLN (AP) -- State law may force the University of Nebraska to disclose who the finalists are to replace Frank Solich as head football coach.

 

The law requiring public disclosure of finalists for the position of the president of the University of Nebraska also applies to the head coach of the football team.

 

If finalists for the coaching position have submitted applications in writing, those would be public under state law, said Kim Robak, the university's vice president of external affairs.

 

NU Athletic Director Steve Pederson has been tightlipped about who is being targeted to replace Solich as the team's coach. A number of potential replacements have been rumored to be in contention, but Pederson has not publicly said who he is considering.

 

But he'd be unable to keep the process secret if he intends to interview finalists who have submitted application materials.

 

While Pederson is not required to say who the finalists are, he is required to make public any application materials submitted by anyone he intends to interview for the position.

 

If there are no job application materials -- which are defined in the law as resumes, reference letters, and school transcripts -- there would be nothing to turn over.

 

In other words, if Pederson does the entire interviewing and hiring process without putting anything in writing, he would not be required under the law to make any names public.

 

The application materials are required to be made public at the point a person is determined to be finalists for the position. A finalist is anyone who is offered and accepts an interview for the position.

 

A University of Nebraska regent wants to tighten the public records law to ensure that the names of finalists for a position are not made public. Regent Kent Schroeder of Kearney said he is particularly concerned with the search for a new president of the university.

 

Releasing the names of finalists can negatively impact on the number of candidates who apply, because some may fear repercussions from their current employer if they know they are seeking a job, Schroeder said.

 

He is looking for a state senator willing to introduce a bill changing the law. So far, Schroeder said, he has not gotten any takers.

 

Any change making the process of selecting the president of the university more secret will be opposed by government watchdog group Common Cause Nebraska and the media of Nebraska.

 

"It's a public position. It ought to be the public's business," said Allen Beermann, executive director of the Nebraska Press Association. "The harm if it's closed is the public does not have a chance to react to, or to see, or to study, or to appreciate, the other applicants and their backgrounds."

 

Changing the law would be a mistake, said Common Cause Nebraska spokesman Jack Gould.

 

"It's something the public has the right to have knowledge of," Gould said. "We would be very disappointed if the process becomes a closed one."

 

Schroeder said his idea would be to keep the names of applicants for the president position secret until a single finalist is selected. After that name is announced, there would be a 30-day period where public comment could be solicited, and the media could investigate, before the hiring is made final.

 

Even if a bill is introduced this legislative session, Schroeder said the presidential search likely would be too far along for it to have an impact.

 

Current NU President L. Dennis Smith plans to retire effective June 30. He turns 65 on Jan. 18. The presidential search committee plans to have a list of finalists to the Board of Regents in May.

 

Pederson said Nov. 30 that he hoped to name the new football coach quickly. He has not spoken publicly about the search since then.

 

Athletic Department spokeswoman Chris Anderson did not immediately return a message.