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North Dakota State University’s Faculty Senate voted 21 to 13, with four abstentions, to censure campus president Dean Bresciani for bypassing the typical hiring process for provost. Faculty members say that Bresciani simply appointed Margaret Fitzgerald to be the university's provost in October even though 100 other candidates had applied for the job. The search, which led to five finalists, cost $90,000, according to the local Inforum. Bresciani was reportedly expected to name a provost from that group of finalists, but he decided not to when it became clear that the top candidate would not be available to start until June. A search committee advised Bresciani to consider three other finalists, but he reportedly said in an email that none of them “garnered sure, strong and broad-based support from the campus or the committee.”
Fitzgerald, who was serving as interim provost at the time, did not apply for the permanent position. Faculty senators said they did not oppose Fitzgerald, just the unofficial process by which she’d been appointed. The university’s policy regarding hiring exists to “ensure that searches be conducted in a fair and equitable way, while limiting the chance of bias,” the senate’s resolution says. Prior to the Senate vote, the general faculty was surveyed about the appointment. Two-thirds of faculty respondents reportedly said that they were uncomfortable with it. University policy leaves room for deviation from the search process in “unique circumstances,” and Bresciani has said the university is facing numerous challenges, including the pandemic.
"President Bresciani values shared governance and thanks faculty senate, staff senate and student government for their deliberations and guidance," Brynn Rawlings, university spokesperson, told Inforum.
