If it were up to several student leaders who heard the four finalists speak and asked questions during recent campus visits, Michael Schill, dean of the University of Chicago Law School, would be the flagship's next chancellor.
UW-Madison faculty blogger Sara Goldrick-Rab -- a faculty senator, associate professor of educational policy studies, and author of the Education Optimists blog -- also endorsed Schill.
They don't have the final say, though.
A selection committee of five members of the UW System Board of Regents and UW System President Kevin Reilly met behind closed doors Friday to interview the four finalists and reach a concensus pick.
Once the job is both offered and accepted, an announcement of the pick will be made, though the choice still must be formally approved by the full board of regents at a meeting in early April.
After she endorsed Schill on her blog, Goldrick-Rab said in another blog post Saturday that her email inbox was filled with notes from upset colleagues "who seem to feel I've misjudged Rebecca Blank's capacity for leading UW-Madison. They don't understand, I'm told, how I can overlook her clear talents, deep commitments to social justice, and great scholarship.
"I don't think I am. I don't doubt any of those things. This isn't about whether I like her or think she can do the job. The question is for which candidate -- Michael Schill or Rebecca Blank-- do we have the best evidence of success at UW-Madison."
Goldrick-Rab said her first priority is "helping to ensure that Wisconsin's great public flagship university is led by someone who wants it to serve all of the people of Wisconsin." For that reason, "I cannot support the candidacy of this undoubtedly outstanding researcher and public servant," she said of Blank, acting U.S. Commerce secretary.
"I gave her the same litmus test I used with Mike Schill last week, and not only did she fail, but she failed in the same exact manner that (former UW-Madison Chancellor) Biddy Martin did several years ago. Frankly, when it comes to higher education affordability, I can't tell these two women apart."
Thirteen student leaders sent a joint letter Friday to the UW-Madison Search and Screen Committee and the UW System Board of Regents, endorsing Schill as the next chancellor.
"It was made clear that Schill has put student priorities at the top of his list, and will fight for an accessible education at UW," the letter said. Schill also expressed the strongest commitment to shared governance, according to the student letter.
"We were troubled by most of the candidates -- especially Dr. Blank and Mr. Kim Wilcox's -- visits to campus," the letter said.
Both Blank and Kim Wilcox, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Michigan State University until he recently left for a non-profit in Washington, D.C., "demonstrated a fundamental misunderstanding of Wisconsin's unique model of shared governance," the letter said. The two also were not up to speed on student issues, it said.
"Dr. Rebecca Blank's experience as an economist leads us to believe that her leadership will tend technocratic," the letter said. "Mr. Wilcox's record of tuition increases and support of a high aid model are proof that Mr. Wilcox would not consider the difficulties Wisconsin students are facing."
The student letter did not mention the fourth candidate, Nicholas Jones, dean of the Whiting School of Engineering at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore.
A separate letter signed by Andrew Bulovsky, chairman of Associated Students of Madison, outlined student impressions of each finalist, and did not endorse one person.
Jones "had a solid understanding of shared governance," Bulvosky said. "Though people have voiced concern that he comes from a small engineering school, we found him to be a bold and visonary leader that would fit well at a large research institution."
Schill "had a very solid grasp of the importance of working with faculty, students and academic staff," Bulovsky wrote. "He actually laid out a plan for the university's future that involved being in constant contact with legislators and working to find additional sources of revenue."
Wilcox "was very engaging in discussion," according to Bulovsky. "Though concerns were raised about his budget cutting at MSU, we were satisfied with his explanation. Aware of forthcoming budget cuts, Dr. Wilcox worked to mitigate the impact by incrementally cutting programs."
Blank "was a pleasure to meet with, and she seemed to take students' concerns about the importance of shared governance seriously," Bulovsky wrote. "Dr. Blank seemed to dodge questions about the importance of accessibility for (Wisconsin) residents, which has made some students concerned over her ability to work with diverse populations."
The salary range for the chancellor's job is $426,500 to $522,500; details of the contract won't be finalized until the regents meet in April.
All four finalists recently visited campus to meet with faculty, students, alumni and others interested in the search.
Blank was a finalist for the UW-Madison chancellor's post in 2008, when Carolyn "Biddy" Martin got the job.
Martin resigned in 2011 to become president of Amherst College in Massachusetts, and was replaced by Interim Chancellor David Ward.
The next chancellor is expected to begin leading the state's flagship university in July.
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