Website Posted For Presidential Search

The Calvin College Board of Trustees has recently posted a website that invites people to send in nominations for a successor to Gaylen Byker, the current Calvin president who plans to retire at the end of the 2011-2012 academic year.

Byker, 63, has led the college for 16 years. Calvin College, a liberal arts school in Grand Rapids, Mich., is owned by the Christian Reformed Church in North America.

Among other things, the new presidential search website provides Calvin College’s vision, which states, in part, that the school “is a comprehensive liberal arts college in the Reformed tradition of historic Christianity. Through our learning, we seek to be agents of renewal in the academy, church and society. We pledge fidelity to Jesus Christ, offering our hearts and lives to do God’s work in God’s world.”

There is historical background on Calvin College along with information about the current student body and the range of Calvin programs and curricula on the site. A profile of search committee members, an overview of Galen Byker’s legacy, and media reports on the search process, the college and Byker are available here, too.

The qualifications that the Board of Trustees is seeking in a candidate are also here. For instance, there is this: “As the college’s leader, the president must be committed to intellectual excellence and rigor, have appropriate academic credentials, and a significant track record of visionary and collaborative leadership.”

The site breaks down areas of leadership that the BOT is especially seeking in a candidate:

• Academic Leadership
• Spiritual Leadership
• Institutional Leadership.

In addition, there is a list of leadership attributes being sought. The BOT is seeking a candidate who has these qualities:

• Visionary and Strategic
• Collaborative, yet Decisive
• Visible and Active Communicator
• Engaging and Relational
• Fundraising Aptitude
• Culturally Sensitive
• Covenantal Expectations.

Finally, the site includes questions a candidate needs to answer as part of the application process and gives details on what other materials are needed to apply for the position. The deadline for applications isSept. 30, 2011.