THE LONG-time favourite for the post of provost of Trinity College, Dublin, Prof Patrick Prendergast, duly secured his expected victory during Saturday’s election among more than 700 academics, members of the college board and council and a number of students. His credentials for the post cannot be questioned. As Minister for Education, Ruairí Quinn noted he will bring many distinguished attributes to his leadership role and can draw on his national and international reputation and experience in teaching and research.
For all that, the actual process whereby Trinity elects – rather than appoints – a new provost is flawed. International best practice suggests Trinity, in common with other top ranked universities, should use a comprehensive search and selection process to identify the best candidate. Instead, the chief executive of Ireland’s highest ranked university is selected by an internal process which militates against external candidates and promotes a kind of pork barrel politics during a lengthy election campaign. Privately, several senior figures in TCD, including some candidates in Saturday’s election, admit the process must change. The Government, which provides more than 80 per cent of Trinity’s funding, must push for and demand this change.
What of the challenges facing the new provost? In common with the rest of the higher education sector, Trinity is facing an immense financial burden. It is seeking to provide a broader range of services to record numbers of students, despite huge constraints on spending. One election candidate (Prof Des Fitzgerald) suggested the college deficit could exceed €100 million within five years. While Trinity must work to boost its earning from philanthropy and commercial activities, Prof Prendergast argues the provost must, first and foremost, argue successfully for greater State support for higher education. But this is no easy task in the current financial climate. Prof Prendergast is also promising to be a more assertive force on behalf of Trinity in discussions with policymakers and government. He is correct when he says that the college’s 419 year history and tradition – not to mention its ranking among the world’s top 50 universities – means it is a special place, deserving more special attention. But, after a period when a certain complacency settled on the college, it needs to speak up for itself with more vigour and authority. Prof Prendergast appears well suited for this task. It is to be hoped he will also play a prominent role in national debate on higher education and much else.