Joe Lane
[email protected]

Dear Mr. Harreld,

I want to apologize. I want to apologize for the behavior of the select few individuals at your Question and Answer session that treated you with such hostility. Regardless of one’s opinion of your credentials, you deserved more respect than you received in that room.

At the University of Iowa, the ideals of open-mindedness and respect are viewed with great regard. The UI you saw in the IMU Second-Floor Ballroom is not the university I know and love. And it is not the university you will know and love.

Of course, not every individual in the room treated you with disrespect, and I commend those who came to the microphone with an open mind and, at the very least, outward respect.

All that said, you must understand our collective skepticism about your application and appointment.

I am a student in the Tippie College of Business — now ranked the 22nd best public undergraduate business program by U.S. News & World Report. In Tippie, we are taught the overwhelming importance of résumés.

In my two semesters since joining the business program, I have already taken three courses requiring the submission of a résumé. The thought of a mistake on my résumé is so unfathomable at this point that the presence of one on yours is terrifying and hard to believe. But this isn’t the only point about which we are cynical.

For example, the citation of Wikipedia, you will learn, is not acceptable. But let me be clear; I don’t want to dwell on the little things. The biggest issue associated with your appointment isn’t even your fault. It has to do with the state Board of Regents.

The regents claim to have made the process of your hiring open and transparent. Let me ask you, Mr. Harreld, is it a very open and transparent process if fewer than 2 percent of the nearly 400 responding faculty members found you to be qualified and the regents went ahead and hired you anyway?

When looking for a new president, the opinions of the faculty, staff, and students ought to be taken into account. But, of course, this is not your fault, and it may be counterproductive to the purpose of this letter.

Most of all, I want you to know that I will be awaiting your presidency with an open mind. I implore all the members of the UI community to do the same. There is, after all, little doubt whether your background will provide unique insight to the workings of our institution. If the community — including faculty, staff, and students — chooses to oppose you from Day 1, the impenetrable gridlock that will ensue will undoubtedly be counterproductive.

So while this letter may be addressed to you, I want all who read it to understand your position is a thankless one. If this university were to become the No. 1 institution on the planet under your administration, do not expect an olive branch from those who doubted you.

I will leave you with this clarification of an apparent point of contention. The UI exists to educate. While economic and research impact are crucial to its success, this is first and foremost, an institution of higher education. When you take office, your commitment will certainly be to the faculty, staff, and greater community; but your first commitment is to the students.

Last, you mentioned in your Q&A that the customers (in this case the students) do not vote on the products the company makes. From the perspective of a business student, I wholeheartedly and unwaveringly disagree, Mr. Harreld. The customers’ vote is the only one that matters. In business, they vote with their dollars, and in education they vote with their minds.

I look forward to your presidency, Mr. Harreld, as I hope the rest of the community will eventually as well.