DPN: A history-The Search for a New President

From the time of Dr. Lee's announcement of his resignation, deaf advocacy groups and organizations made it clear to the Board that they wanted the next president of Gallaudet University to be deaf.

The Search for a New President

When Jerry Lee became president of Gallaudet University in 1983, he did so with the understanding that he would serve in that capacity for a limited period of time. However, when he announced his resignation on August 24, 1987, it still came as surprise to many. He was gone four months later, at the end of 1987, to take up a post as vice-president of Bassett Furniture, a furniture company located in Bassett, Virginia. It didn't set well with many that the organization that lured Lee away was the same one run by the husband of the chairperson of the Board of Trustees, Jane Spilman.

The Board of Trustees quickly established a committee to begin the search for a new president. The committee included Board members and representatives from the alumni, students, faculty, and staff. A consultant was hired to ensure that the best qualified deaf and hearing individuals applied. By the deadline in October, 87 applications were received; by January the committee had reduced the number to twelve. Each of twelve was interviewed, and by mid-January, it was announced there were six semifinalists: three deaf, three hearing.

In February, the six semifinalists were again interviewed by the search committee, as well as by eight on-campus groups. Each of the interviewing groups rated the candidates and made their recommendations to the search committee; on February 28, 1988, the committee announced the finalists: Dr. Harvey Corson, a deaf man serving as the superintendent of the [photo of Dr. Zinser] Louisiana School for the Deaf; Dr. I. King Jordan, a deaf man who was currently the dean of the University's College of Arts and Sciences; and Dr. Elisabeth Zinser, a hearing woman and assistant chancellor of the University of North Carolina, Greensboro.

From the time of Dr. Lee's announcement of his resignation, deaf advocacy groups and organizations made it clear to the Board that they wanted the next president of Gallaudet University to be deaf. These groups included the PCD, the National Association of the Deaf, the Gallaudet University Alumni Association, and some faculty groups. They wrote articles for deaf publications, sent letters of support to the Board, and recommended lists of prospective deaf candidates. In addition, a group of young alumni—calling themselves the "Ducks" (because, the story goes, they held their first meetings at a duckpin bowling alley), developed strategies that went beyond letter-writing campaigns.

As the momentum for a deaf president grew, letters of endorsement flooded in. Vice-President George Bush and Senators Bob Dole, Bob Graham, Tom Harkin, and Lowell Weicker all supported the idea, as did Civil Rights activist Jesse Jackson. The mainstream media had yet to latch on to the cause, however—but that would change.

Strange as it seems now, the level of student involvement at this point was low to virtually non-existent. But this too would change, and when the students joined in they made all the difference in the world.

past presidents the search the week before

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Last modified February 16, 1998