Columbia, Mo. ? Some curators and lawmakers agreed Thursday that it will be tough to replace University of Missouri President Elson Floyd – and that his successor won’t come cheap.

Floyd was named president of Washington State University on Wednesday. He said it’s unclear how long he will remain in Missouri.

Board of Curators Vice Chairman Don Walsworth said he expects the university will need to pay the new president more money than Floyd was making to lead the four-campus university system, though he didn’t cite a specific figure.

Floyd will receive an annual salary of $600,000 at Washington State University, and his contract includes retention bonuses of $50,000 in the second and third years, $100,000 in the fourth year and $150,000 in the fifth year, the university said in a news release. He was paid $436,000 in total annual compensation as head of the Missouri system.

Floyd’s predecessor at Washington State, V. Lane Rawlins, had total compensation of $536,000.

“I don’t think we can be able to attract the person we want to attract with the salary we’ve been paying Elson Floyd,” Walsworth said.

Salary study

He said a task force is working in the next few months to study salaries within the university system, from president down to staff members, to see how they compare with peers across the country.

The University of Missouri system includes more than 63,000 students, while Washington State University has about 23,000 students spread among four campuses.

Curator Cheryl Walker said Floyd’s departure is a loss to the state, and she questioned whether the curators could have done more to keep Floyd in Missouri.

“Before Dr. Floyd, few outside academic circles could even name the president of the University of Missouri. Elson Floyd changed that,” she said.

Walsworth would not set a timeline for naming a new president, but curators could begin the process to find his successor as early as today when they meet again.

“Elson is a total package of a university president. We cannot replace Elson Floyd,” Walsworth said.

Walsworth also said it’s important that Floyd’s replacement be someone who has both academic credentials and the business sense to run a university system that is much like a corporation.

“We’re looking for a CEO,” he said. “We have to look at all avenues.”

Curators’ terms expiring

Complicating the search process, three of the nine curators’ terms are up Jan. 1. That means new members will help shape the hunt for the next leader. The new members will bring to six the number of curators appointed by Gov. Matt Blunt.

On Thursday afternoon, Blunt announced an appointment to fill one of those slots. He named Democrat Judith Haggard, of Kennett, to replace Anne Ream, of West Plains. Haggard is a family nurse practitioner at SEMO Health Network and earned bachelor’s and master’s nursing degrees from the university’s Columbia and St. Louis campuses. She must be confirmed by the Senate.

Floyd declined to offer advice to the board on what to look for in the next president.

“They will have their own desire,” he said. “It’s really not my role to write a position description for the next person.”

Lawmakers also shared their input on how the university should move forward.

Rep. Ed Robb, R-Columbia, agreed with Walsworth that the university must find someone knowledgeable in business. But he also said it needs someone with a strong academic background who is good at communicating the university message to the public.

Difficult, expensive

“It’s going to be difficult and it’s going to be expensive,” Robb said. “He’s got just an outstanding set of skills. He’s a great diplomat.”

House Minority Leader Jeff Harris, D-Columbia, said the next president must be able to work with members of both political parties. The person must “particularly be a strong and decisive leader when it comes to keeping tuition affordable and making sure the University of Missouri is an even stronger economic engine in this state,” Harris said.

In a farewell speech Thursday, Floyd said he was honored to lead the state’s university system.

He highlighted accomplishments during his tenure, including increased enrollment, major fundraising drives at each campus and efforts to strengthen relationships with legislators and state officials. Funding for higher education increased slightly this year after a string of tight budgets.

“It’s all about making sure we maintain accessibility and accountability and affordability,” Floyd said.