MACON, Ga. (ABP) — Trustees of Mercer University are poised to elect Bill Underwood, interim president of Baylor University, as president of the Baptist school in Macon, Ga.
Underwood, 49, met with some faculty and board members during a visit to Mercer Nov. 7-8, according to several faculty members. All trustees were invited to the meetings, but Underwood is not expected to be elected by trustees until their regularly scheduled meeting Dec. 2.
Mercer president Kirby Godsey, 68, is retiring June 30. The school has 7,084 students.
A law professor at Baylor, Underwood was considered a leading candidate for the presidency at that school before removing his name from consideration two months ago. Baylor trustees elected Nevada educator John Lilley as president Nov. 3.
Underwood has been in discussion with the Mercer search committee for some time. Although he has no formal ties to Mercer, he has been a friend of Godsey's since both were panelists for a Baylor conference on Christian higher education in April.
The impending nomination of Underwood to lead Mercer is “not a big secret,” said one source close to the process. “They're all feeling very positive. … I think Bill would be a great fit for Mercer.”
This is at least the second trip Underwood has made to meet with Mercer officials, although this trip is more “focused” and included his wife, sources said. He reportedly met with Mercer deans and faculty representatives on the school's campuses in Macon and Atlanta, as well as major donors.
According to participants in the meetings, Underwood was not presented as the search committee's nominee, but the intention to nominate him was clear.
The search committee “is working diligently to identify and interview candidates,” said Mercer spokesperson Judith Lunsford in a statement to Associated Baptist Press Nov. 8. “We don't have any information to release at this point of the process. The earliest we might have an announcement would be at the regular December meeting of the board of trustees, but there has not even been a call for a vote at this time.”
Underwood, a popular figure within the Baylor faculty, immediately made his mark after becoming interim by shaking up the university's top administration, most notably replacing Provost David Lyle Jeffrey. Underwood's leadership as interim fueled speculation he might become Baylor's president.
According to a Mercer leader who met with Underwood Nov. 8, Underwood was asked if he might return to Baylor as president at a later time. Underwood reportedly declined interest, saying Mercer has more potential for growth than Baylor.
Baylor has been deeply divided in recent years over the school's direction and the leadership of former president Robert Sloan.
“Who wants to take in that role, with a divided board, when you can go to Mercer and have a united board?” asked one school leader.
Last year, Underwood publicly debated Baylor Provost Jeffrey on the proper role of academic freedom at a religious university. The former general counsel for Baylor, Underwood was a leader of the committee that investigated the death of Baylor basketball player Patrick Dennehy.
Underwood, a graduate of Oklahoma Baptist University and the University of Illinois College of Law, practiced civil trial law in Dallas before joining the Baylor faculty in 1990. He and his wife, Leslie, have two children — Jessica, 16, and William, 11. They are members of Seventh and James Baptist Church in Waco.
Baylor faculty members recently adopted an affirmation of Underwood's leadership as interim.
“Over the past four months, he has demonstrated an attitude of acceptance and respect for all faculty members, provided sound and transparent leadership, encouraged and modeled administrative efficiency, and undertaken concrete and intentional actions toward healing the university community,” the statement said.