Who says the
Smithsonian Institution doesn't owe up to its mistakes? Well, just about everyone, though that's a
story for another day.
But in case you were wondering how the acting leadership feels about the controversy over the hiring of
Kevin Gover as director of the
National Museum of the American Indian, here are the words straight the horses mouth. [Sent on late Saturday, no less. Somebody was working late! Oh, and why can't Cristián send email directly to the board members? That must be some super-secret Smithsonian protocol.]
The gist of it? Well, we're sorry we didn't tell anyone who we were going to hire but that's how we've always done it and we aren't going to change because we were right in the first place. Oh and please come to Rick West's going-away party because it's going to be fabulous and cost lots o' money. And the coming-in party for K.Go is going to be amazing too. See you soon!
From: Samper, Cristián
Sent: Sat 9/29/2007 8:05 PM
To: WEST, Rick
Subject: Message to the members of the NMAI Board
Dear Rick, I would be grateful if you could send this message to all the
members of the NMAI board.
Dear members of the Board:
I am writing to follow up on my decision to appoint Kevin Gover as the new
Director of the National Museum of the American Indian. Having read the
recent exchange of emails and news coverage, it is clear that there were
some misunderstandings regarding the responsibilities, process and
information leading up to his appointment. I regret this has been the case
and trust we can have a constructive dialogue focusing on the future of
the Museum.
As you are all aware, the legislation that created the Smithsonian
established a Board of Regents that is responsible for the oversight of
the institution and the appointment of the Secretary. In turn, the
Secretary serves as the Chief Executive Officer and has the authority to
appoint the Directors of all museums and research centers. It is
customary to establish search committees that include representatives from
the Smithsonian administration, advisory boards, key stakeholders, and
have them make a recommendation to the Secretary. This is the process
that was used for the selection of Rick West as Director of NMAI, as well
my own appointment as Director of the National Museum of Natural History.
Having reviewed the information related to this search, I believe the
process overall followed best practices. I am pleased that there were
members of the board, council of elders, and a former senior member of the
staff as part of the search committee, including the Chairman of the
board. The purpose was to make sure there was substantive input from the
board throughout the selection, as well as information regarding progress.
I would also like to thank many of you who provided inputs and names to
the search firm that was retained by the Smithsonian. As with any search,
it is important to make sure that we can attract the best candidates, many
of whom request that their names remain confidential. I was pleased to
learn that there was a strong pool of candidates, and that the search
committee interviewed ten of them. The committee ranked them and I
interviewed the top two finalists in late August. I was impressed by both
candidates and concurred that Kevin Gover had the qualities and experience
that we need in a Director. I am confident he will be a good leader for
NMAI going forward.
I understand that many of you would have liked to be more involved and
some of you learned about Kevin's appointment through the media. I agree
that we should have made sure all the members of the board were informed
prior to the announcement, and regret that this was not the case. I look
forward to seeing you at the upcoming meeting of the NMAI board. For now,
I would like to invite you to focus on the best way we can support Kevin
Gover and the staff of NMAI during this transition. We can be proud of
what we have accomplished during the last 17 years, and look forward to
working with you closely to strengthen the work of the Museum in the
future.
Sincerely,
Cristián Samper
Acting Secretary, Smithsonian Institution
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