Sloan steps down, accepts chancellorship
After serving almost 10 years as president of the largest Baptist university in the world, Robert B. Sloan Jr. announced Friday he is stepping down from his leadership position and into the role of chancellor effective June 1.
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Photo by Jamie Westmoreland, The Baylor Lariat |
Sloan and Regent Chairman Will Davis held a press conference Friday morning announcing Sloan's new responsibilities and accepting questions from a statewide group of media outlets.
Sloan cited the "good of Baylor and Baylor's destined role in the kingdom of God," as well as his expiration of "political capital" as reasons for the change. He said he and Davis have been in discussions about it since November.
"For that reason, the board of regents and I have mutually agreed that I will leave the president's office to become chancellor at the end of the current semester," Sloan said at the conference. "The regents and I remain fully committed to the vision," he added.
Sloan's tenure at Baylor has been riddled with controversy over his style of leadership and plan for the university's future. A few years after becoming president in 1995, Sloan began pushing Baylor 2012, and his implementation of the vision's imperatives along with his leadership methods led to two Faculty Senate no-confidence votes in the past year and calls for his resignation from Baylor constituents.
"The focus should always be on the vision, not on the president. Though I have worked hard to cultivate mutual understanding with those who disagree with various decisions or even my management style, the reality is that my role as president has become a distraction from the main goal of fulfilling the vision," Sloan said. "The vision is more important than any one person. No one is indispensable."
Both Davis and Sloan emphasized repeatedly that university officials plan to continue with Baylor 2012 under the new president.
"Even with this change in leadership, Baylor will continue moving forward with the vision of Baylor 2012," Davis said. " ... it continues to be our blueprint for the future."
Davis said the regents will meet Feb. 3-4 and are expected to formally approve the change. He said the regents will begin their search immediately and will name their interim choice, who will take over June 1. No candidates for the position have been named.
When asked if there would be any other changes in the administration, Sloan said that to his knowledge, administrators are staying in their positions at least until the new president takes over.
According to regent Wes Bailey, regents had a conference call Thursday evening and voiced unanimous acceptance of today's presentation.
Some students met with Sloan earlier in the morning, where he informed them of his decision. Twenty students, including the student body officers, class officers, members of student court, members of student congress and other student leaders met in Pat Neff Hall at 10 a.m.
"This move will let our commitment to Christ shape the pursuit of higher education," Sloan told the student leaders. He added that what sets Baylor apart is that the members of the university are "unapologetically committed to Christ," and they will continue to excel in academics, athletics and every realm of university life.
Also at the meeting, Student Body President Jeff Leach said he and other student body officers will be working tirelessly to make sure that a student is placed on the search committee for the new president to ensure students have a voice.
Leach also released a statement saying, "I will be eternally grateful for the impact that Dr. Sloan has had on my life and I know I speak for thousands of current students and graduates when I express my heartfelt gratitude for his service to our university."
He added, "Minds have been challenged, leaders have been raised up and lives have been changed because of Dr. Sloan and his leadership."
With 130 days left as president of Baylor, Sloan said he is very enthusiastic about completing his time and president and is looking forward to his new role.
Sloan has been a member of the Baylor community for decades first as a student, Baylor athlete, then as the parent of Baylor students, professor, dean of George W. Truett Theological Seminary, and finally as president.
Sloan's new responsibilities as chancellor will focus on fund raising, recruitment and promoting the vision. Sloan said he and Davis have discussed a three-year contract for the position, which can be extended in the future. The last person to hold the position of chancellor was former Baylor president Herbert H. Reynolds, who left the post in 2000 after serving for five years.
Sloan said he will be present at the May graduation to hand out diplomas to graduating seniors.
"We expect a period of calm as the rancor we have faced should evaporate," Davis said. "Baylor will be able to go home in a healing fashion."