Over the past year or two, Kansas University officials have faced the challenge of selecting a new chancellor, a new provost and new deans for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the School of Music and the School of Law. All the positions, aside from the law school dean, have been filled.

Search committees were formed to scour the country trying to find and recruit the best possible individuals to move into these important positions. Members of those committees were expected to conduct thorough investigations of those they were considering for the KU posts.

Unfortunately, in some cases, it doesn’t appear investigators were sufficiently thorough. The jury still is out as to whether the people of Kansas and KU students and faculty got the best individuals available for these serious administrative positions, even though thousands of dollars and many hours were spent on the effort.

Far more attention needs to be given to the selection of those who are asked to serve on search committees.

This all is past tense, water over the dam, but it really isn’t, because KU must now get started in finding a truly outstanding individual to become the university’s next athletic director. Lew Perkins is leaving, and how is KU going about finding his replacement?

This writer visited with a broad group of knowledgeable, experienced individuals seeking their ideas about the best way to get the right individual for this position. Those interviewed included former athletic directors, chancellors, athletes and conference commissioners, along with generous alumni. Those in the chancellor category also represented faculty concerns.

This writer asked, “What should KU be looking for? What’s the best way to go about the challenge and what qualities or characteristics are essential in an individual?”

First, these individuals agreed it is important to use the services of a professional consultant who would serve as an adviser to the search group.

The search committee should select this individual or company with great care because recent KU history shows there are superior knowledgeable and thorough consultants, as well as less-than-thorough consultants, and they all cost about the same.

Those interviewed by this writer also agreed the chancellor should select search committee members. The departing athletic director should not have any role in this task.

A former chancellor said, “The chancellor should form a committee truly representative of the university, including faculty, students, alumni and the Lawrence community. It must be truly representative with no single interest dominating the group.”

An extremely experienced and nationally recognized authority on intercollegiate sports said that after he retired and looked back on his career, he told himself that if he were starting off again, dreaming of the same career path, he would want an MBA and a law degree. “This is almost essential in today’s society, and the intercollegiate sports arena,” he said.

Another basic belief among these experienced individuals is that in past years, it seemed to be the practice to elevate a successful coach or player to the athletic director’s job. Today, however, much more than a successful coaching record is needed in the A..D.’s position.

These men emphasized the person leaving the office should not handpick his successor!

Several individuals said they think it is important for the new KU athletic director to have knowledge and appreciation of the Midwest ethic and a knowledge of the history of KU, the strength of its alumni support and the role of past greats such as Gale Sayers, Ray Evans, John Hadl, Phog Allen, Oliver Spencer, Bill Hougland, Jim Ryun and other sports stars who came from Kansas and the Middle West. They should understand the culture, thinking and values of those from this part of the country but, at the same time, be involved, knowledgeable and aware of what is going on in the intercollegiate sports world.

All those interviewed said KU should go after someone who is happy where he is, successful and prized by his current employer. “Sell that person on the KU job, the opportunities and the tremendous support the university enjoys — both in academics and athletics. We’re not looking for someone out of work or unhappy where he is today.”

The new A.D. needs to be experienced and have compiled a good record, a former athlete and athletic director said. “This is not a position for an on-the-job learning exercise. He must be a good manager, a person who can raise money. We’re dealing with a big multi-million-dollar business. He should be a competitor and an individual who can lead and inspire. A proven record is essential.”

He added, “He must perform in a manner that the school’s faculty respects.”

Another individual with strong conference experience said, “It is dangerous and wrong for anyone in today’s college scene to think all the realignment activity is over. Believe me, it ain’t over yet. The ‘haves’ are still going to try to control the ‘have-nots.’ You need someone who is a leader who has both vision and courage, a person highly respected among his peers.”

He questioned how college chancellors and presidents can control their operations and their visions for their universities when, on the average, chancellors are serving only four to six years in office.

He also mentioned the growing number of women now serving as chancellors or presidents and how they had been raised with a different perspective and understanding of sports compared with men who have grown up and competed in the competitive sports environment. They just have a different feeling about sports and Title 9 certainly has made a difference than it was in the past years.”

This man didn’t pull any punches in saying “Texas has dominated the Big 12 from the outset and it will continue to try to call the shots. KU cannot afford to be asleep at the switch.” He also said control of college sports has been turned over to the television networks with college presidents and chancellors unable to do much about it.

As noted above, every person this writer visited with said college sports is a big business and KU should find someone with business and management skills. Several of those interviewed cited the growing number of schools at which the A.D.s had a law or MBA degree. “It’s a massive job today,” one of them said, “and the A.D. must have personnel and management skills, be able to raise money, be a leader respected by the faculty, handle finances and behave in a manner which merits the respect of the entire university community as well as alumni and friends.” They all said the new A.D. must be a good communicator and make an excellent personal appearance.

“Kansas deserves the best,” one said, “and those on the selection committee should not settle for less. You can’t afford to make a mistake.”

A committed search committee composed of an excellent broad representation of the university is critical if the school is going to have a true all-star move into the athletic director’s office. But in the end, it is up to the chancellor to sell the university to the top candidates and to make the final decision.

She will carry the responsibility of what kind of person the university hires for this job, which, for so many, serves as the face and image of the school.

“Different times call for different types of people. However, it always is essential emphasis is placed on character, the highest possible level of transparency and the manner in which the individual represents the university,” said one former university leader. He added, “It is important Chancellor Gray-Little moves with caution in this very important appointment, not with a mindset of just getting this headache behind her.”

Perkins was successful in raising money and building new facilities, but he fell short in many other areas, particularly when he was one of the highest-paid A.D.s in the country.

KU deserves, and needs, better!