Refusing to bow to retirement, outgoing SIUC Chancellor Donald Beggs has re-entered the job market to pursue the presidency at Western Michigan University, where he is one of five candidates under consideration.

The post opened after the current president announced his retirement after 13 years at the helm. A new president will take office July 31.

Western Michigan University is located in Kalamazoo, Mich., a town of approximately 80,000, and is a Carnegie I research institution, a notch above SIUC’s Carnegie II research status. Enrollment is higher than SIUC slightly more than 26,000.

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The five finalists were chosen from a pool of 60 candidates by a search committee composed of trustees and representatives from administrators, faculty, students, alumni and the public.

The four other candidates are:Blaine Brownell, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at the University of North Texas;

Elson Floyd, executive vice chancellor at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill;

Jay Noren, professor of health management and former vice chancellor for Health Sciences at the University of Wisconsin at Madison; and

Elisabeth Zinser, chancellor of the University of Kentucky at Lexington.

A decision is expected to be announced at Western Michigan’s Board of Trustees meeting April 24.

Beggs said he applied for the position as an alternative to retirement.

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Retirement is still very much an option for me, Beggs said. But after discussions over the past year, my wife and I have concluded that we enjoy this work and if there is a place we can do the things we have at SIUC it would be good for us.

Despite the tension between administration and faculty currently festering at SIUC, Beggs said a unionized Western Michigan faculty would not be a point of contention.

The difference is they have a contract we can work with, Beggs said. Here, we are still working to get the first contract. That’s the difference.

If Beggs is chosen for the post, he can expect significant media exposure because the Kalamazoo media market is relatively large, says WMU Spokesman Mike Matthews.

It is part of the Kalamazoo/Grand Rapids/Battle Creek television market of 1.2 million people, Matthews said. It is an area of dominant influence in broadcasting terms.

The announcement of Beggs’ candidacy comes one week after Jo Ann Argersinger, provost for University of Maryland Baltimore County, was named SIUC’s next chancellor, effective July 1, at the March Board of Trustees meeting.

Beggs said he will not leave SIUC with any hard feelings.

This is my alma mater, Beggs said. I will leave here with extremely positive feelings about the institution.

Beggs received both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from SIUC and has served in a professional capacity at the University for 32 years. Before replacing John Guyon as interim chancellor in 1996, he was dean of the College of Education for 15 years.