COLUMBIA, S.C. – The University of South Carolina’s Board of Trustees voted Friday in favor of making retired General Robert Caslen the next president of the state’s flagship university.
The nomination process for Caslen has sparked plenty of controversy among alumni, donors, students and staff. Last week, Caslen received a unanimous vote of no confidence from the Faculty Senate should he be elected President.
In an email to the Board Thursday night, Darla Moore, the University’s largest donor, also urged them to discontinue their current search for a president and start the process over. Moore warned that “to do otherwise is to do irremediable damage to the university.”
That email was obtained by WCCB’s sister station in Columbia, WOLO, and can be viewed below:
“As the largest donor to the university and the namesake of one of the largest schools with a broad national reputation, I’m making a final appeal to the Board to reject the rank political influence in selecting the next President. Notwithstanding the political nature of the Board, the university is an institution of higher learning and the surest way to extinguish it’s integrity is to politicize it.
Not one constituency of the university is in favor of the current process including the donors who are the lifeblood of the university’s future. The process should be started over to find a qualified candidate without the current controversy. To do otherwise is to do irremediable damage to the university.”
Despite concerns, the board moved forward with Friday’s vote.
WOLO reporter Tim Scott was there as supporters and protestors lined the lobby of The University of South Carolina’s Alumni Center ahead of the Executive Session.
Inside, Scott says speakers voiced their opinions on the process and the possibility of Caslen’s appointment.
Faculty Senate Chair Marco Valtorta said last week’s vote was not indicative of Gen. Caslen’s ability to lead, but rather a reflection of the process itself. Valtorta also called on the Board to restart their presidential search, saying the process as it is has been “contaminated.”
Voltorta said finding a president should not be based on partisan politics, and a presidency in which a president does not have the support of a faculty is ineffective.
USC’s Student Body President Luke Rankin told board members that the students of the University feel their voices have been largely unheard throughout the search process.
Other speakers, like Trustee Richard Jones, praised Caslen’s military background and accomplishments during his time at West Point. Jones said the Board would be making a mistake to not elect Caslen as president and “could lose this great man” if they did not act.
South Carolina Superintendent of Education Molly Spearman said she spoke with Caslen and was extremely impressed with his ideas and vision for the university. Spearman told the Board that he would be a great president for USC.
After several hours of debate, The University of South Carolina’s Board of Trustees voted 11-8, with one no vote, in favor of electing General Caslen as the University’s 29th president.
The University of South Carolina has released the following statement:
Robert “Bob” Caslen, a retired lieutenant general and the former superintendent and president of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, was selected the 29th president of the University of South Carolina on Friday (July 19).
Caslen was chosen by the university’s Board of Trustees to lead the state’s flagship university system, succeeding Harris Pastides, who is retiring after leading the university for more than a decade.
“In selecting Bob Caslen, the board has chosen an experienced leader with the skills needed to raise our institution to even greater heights,” said board Chairman John C. von Lehe Jr. “He has a deep commitment to serving students, building on our strengths in research and teaching, and making our alumni proud.”
As president, Caslen will lead the university’s main Columbia campus as well as seven other system institutions around the state and two medical school campuses. The university is the state’s leading educator, enrolling more than 50,000 students throughout the system.
“I am honored to be chosen to lead this great institution. I fully recognize the challenges the board addressed to get to this point, and I am grateful for their support and confidence,” Caslen said Friday. “I will work tirelessly to listen to all of our students, faculty, staff, board members and all our constituents to understand their concerns and issues, and I will actively seek their advice. From talking with many people, it is clear the University of South Carolina is on track to be the preeminent institution of higher education in America today, and I will work to move this university and system in that direction, ensuring South Carolina continues to deliver a world-class education to students while making the state a better place to live. I am eager to start meeting with students, faculty and staff, and my goal is to work collaboratively with our entire university and system community to address challenges, to build confidence, respect and trust, and to create new opportunities. I also want to thank those who supported my candidacy and promise to lead this institution with the highest integrity, respect and character.”
During his time at West Point, the academy was recognized as the nation’s No. 1 public college by U.S. News and World Report and Forbes magazines. Through the establishment of Centers of Excellence at West Point, Caslen developed an integration between Army applied problem sets and West Point research and intellectual capital. He created the Army Cyber Institute to build skills and leaders. He won support of Army leadership and of Congress to build over $2 billion in capital expenditures.
Caslen retired from the Army in 2018, following a 43-year military career that included stints as the chief of the Office of Security Cooperation in Iraq, where he was the senior military commander in Iraq after the drawdown of U.S. and allied forces in 2011.
After leaving the military last year, Caslen became the senior counsel to the president at the University of Central Florida with the task to drive organizational, regulatory and cultural change at UCF.
He earned his bachelor’s degree from West Point, a Master of Business Administration degree in finance from Long Island University and a Master of Science degree in industrial engineering from Kansas State University.
Caslen believes in building diverse, inclusive teams as a way to get the best outcomes. His record includes a demonstrated commitment to diversity, and during his tenure at West Point he appointed the first woman to serve as the commandant of cadets, the first woman to serve as a dean at West Point and the first African American female cadet to serve as first captain of the Corps of Cadets.
“I value diversity in teams, because the ideas contributed from multiple perspectives make an organization stronger as a whole. Just as I have done throughout my career, I will build teams at the University of South Carolina in which everyone is treated with dignity and respect,” Caslen said.
The University of South Carolina is a globally recognized, high-impact research university committed to a superior student experience and dedicated to innovation in learning, research and community engagement. Founded in 1801, the university offers more than 350 degree programs and is the state’s only top-tier Carnegie Foundation research institution. More than 50,000 students are enrolled at one of 20 locations throughout the state, including the research campus in Columbia. With 56 nationally ranked academic programs including top-ranked programs in international business, the nation’s best honors college and distinguished programs in engineering, law, medicine, public health and the arts, the university is helping to build healthier, more educated communities in South Carolina and around the world.
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The vote drew differing opinions from both local and state leaders, including SC Governor Henry McMaster and Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin.
The University of South Carolina President-Elect also posted a statement on Twitter shortly after Friday’s vote saying “I am honored to be chosen to lead this great institution. I fully recognize the challenges the Board addressed to get to this point, and I am grateful for their support and confidence.”
Caslen will take over as president when current USC President Dr. Harris Pastides retires at this end of July.
