Commissioner of Administration Jay Dardenne this morning again acknowledged his interest in a top leadership position at LSU but says he hasn’t talked to anyone on the Board of Supervisors about the job.
Speaking on Jim Engster’s radio show “Talk Louisiana,” Dardenne said he doesn’t have any idea what’s going on with the search, adding, “They haven’t even started the process yet.”
When asked if he had been contacted about the position by anyone, Dardenne said he hasn’t talked to “any of them.”
“I don’t know what their process is going to be and they have to decide what they are looking for and I want that to play out,” he said. “I have answered people’s questions when asked about this. Yes, I would be interested, but it’s got to run its course.”
Dardenne’s name surfaced as a possible replacement for former LSU President F. King Alexander nearly a year ago, months, in fact, before Alexander announced he would be leaving for Oregon State University.
Though rumors frequently swirl around political circles in Baton Rouge, speculation about Dardenne gained such traction around the Capitol, both he and Gov. John Bel Edwards addressed it publicly.
Other names have since surfaced, too, including that of former chancellor and current NCAA President Mark Emmert.
As Business Report details in a new feature, board chair Mary Werner says she’s not paying any mind to all the chatter and is hoping to conduct an open, transparent national search.
But it’s been two months since Alexander announced he would step down, which became effective Dec. 31, and the board has yet to take any official action or announce its plans.
Werner has also indicated the board will evaluate whether to split the president’s position into two roles—a president of the LSU System and a chancellor of the LSU A&M campus, which is how the university’s leadership was structured until Alexander’s hiring in 2013. She says many constituent groups have argued for revisiting the leadership structure for a variety of reasons.
Such a move, if approved, could pave the way for Dardenne, who holds a law degree but not a Ph.D., to serve as president, while someone with higher ed credentials could serve as chancellor.
On the radio this morning, Engster pointed out that a law degree could be considered analogous to a Ph.D. and asked Dardenne if he had any thoughts or preference on splitting the position.
“No,” Dardenne replied. “it’s up to them how they want to handle that, whether two or one. They’ve got to decide what they’re looking for.”
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