"Call Me Kevin"

 Even before he was named president of Idaho State University, Kevin Satterlee was crafting a message for his future team- one that created a sense of togetherness and a need to work together for student success. 

“People ask why I want to leave Boise State,” he said at his candidate open forum. “The answer is, “I don’t. I don’t have job applications out everywhere. I have one. I see the potential here. I see the good I can do here.” 

In the years prior to this transition, Idaho State had taken some hits, both internally and externally. Internally, the president and other top officials had faced votes of no confidence. The faculty senate had been disbanded, prompting a sanction by the American Association of University Professors. Externally, the University faced declining enrollment, exacerbated by a perception of mistreatment of international students. The previous president, Arthur Vailas, had left under less-than-ideal circumstances, and, before him, the previous president Richard Bowen had left under different, but equally difficult  circumstances as well. 

Every candidate for the job had addressed these concerns in a fashion, but Satterlee had a unique style. As faculty asked him questions during his interview, they referred to him as Mr. Satterlee, and each time he said “call me Kevin.” 

His tone was friendly, smooth and confident. He told stories about his background as a first-generation student and a native Idahoan. He didn’t say he wanted a student-centric institution. Instead, he showed it with a story that he would tell for years to come- that his favorite day was the first day of school because it was the day we begin to change someone’s life. 

The previous president had painted the picture of a University that must excel in research first. Even in the interview process, Satterlee painted the picture of a University that changed the lives of students from all walks of life. When asked, he addressed research as a priority specifically because it improved the student experience, not as the revenue- generating endeavor the previous president sought.

“I don’t want to offend anyone, but I’m hoping we can be honest,” he said during his interview. “Your research revenues and research expenditures over the last eight years are trending in the wrong direction. That needs to turn…research is too valuable to our students, to the student experience.” 

Choosing Satterlee as a new university president was a risk in many ways for the Idaho State Board of Education. The previous president was at odds with the faculty, and finding someone to smooth that out The vast majority of faculty members have Ph.D. degrees, and it would be easy to assume that they would expect a leader who had come through the ranks of academia. Satterlee hadn’t — he had a law degree, not a Ph.D. He had never done academic research, and had only worked as an adjunct professor. He was the COO at Boise State University, not a provost. And he had worked for and with the State Board of Education in various capacities for 20 years- the same State Board of Education that had allowed President Vailas to disband the Faculty Senate. Hiring someone who had never been a part of the faculty experience was a bold move when many of the key points of turmoil at ISU involved the academic community. 

It was a bold move, and it made me curious— especially in a time of turmoil, how can a man with little academic experience on paper win the hearts and minds at an organization where academic background is highly valued? In this series of blogs, we’ll talk about how he did it, and a little bit about what the future might hold as well.