As of noon on Monday, 33 people have applied to be Youngstown State University’s next president. The name people are most excited about seeing is, of course, that of former YSU coach Jim Tressel.
But there are 32 other people that have thrown their name into the ring. Among them are former and current university presidents, department chairs, chancellors, professors and doctors.
Two of the applicants are at YSU right now: Martin Abraham, Dean of the College of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics, and Daryl Mincey, chair of the chemistry department.
Some other notables include the dean of the College of Liberal Arts at Southern Illinois, the chancellor of North Dakota University System and the dean of the College of Business at Bloomsburg University.
The important thing to keep in mind from Tuesday on out is that this needs to be a fair race.
Yes, local leaders have voiced support of Tressel, and we even acknowledged that Tressel could be a good president a couple weeks ago. But the other candidates deserve as much of a chance as Tressel.
The other applicants aren’t nobodies. They all have their own merits and experiences and ideas that will contribute to the success of YSU. They wouldn’t have applied if they didn’t.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again. Every candidate, not just Jim Tressel, deserves an equal chance to be YSU’s eighth president. Just because people want him to lead our university, doesn’t mean he’s the best choice.
If he is, pick him. If he isn’t, don’t succumb to outside pressure. Instead, choose the person that will be the best at making YSU successful.