David Hahn was hired formally on July 1 by the State Board of Education to become Boise State University’s eighth president, and the expected expressions of energy and enthusiasm were there in abundance, even if the meeting was mostly an online Zoom session.
Hahn remarked, “Boise State University is the place for me. I can’t wait to get going.”
The reply from Board President Kurt Libich was, “I hope you’re ready to hit the ground running, because you’re running as of today.”
Take that response seriously: The challenges waiting for Hahn at Boise will be formidable.
Some of what he encounters, what may be a serious, important and intensive but ultimately easier part of the job, should be very much in his wheelhouse.
We don’t know a lot about him – his name wasn’t even associated publicly with BSU until about two weeks before the hiring – but much of what we do know sounds as if it should match up well with large parts of what the university does.
Hahn’s background is in mechanical engineering research, and he holds a dozen patents. He has not been an institution president or vice president, which might have been expected and often has been the case; he is dean of the College of Education at the University of Arizona. That’s probably a stronger credential, though, than it may first suggest, since UA is a major research institution. Before that he was an administrator at the University of Florida.
BSU is in a major growth mode, and UA has been a growing institution too, and in some of the same areas that BSU seems most likely to position itself for. You could easily imagine someone with Hahn’s background locking into a smooth working relationship with, say, Micron. Words like “builder” were often used to describe him, with some reason.
Administering, managing, developing at Boise State are undoubtedly an important part of the job, and he appears well suited to it. What we don’t know a lot about, yet, is how in other ways he will fit into his new environment, something that may be more challenging in some ways than what he’s worked with before.
Idaho’s governing Republican Party of yore was a clear supporter of higher education, but these days it and the governing structure of the state have a touchy relationship with it. To judge from its actions, the Idaho Legislature seems as least as skeptical as supportive of the college and universities and their mission. At the same time, BSU’s student and professional base, and the city where it is located, have a very different set of expectations from much of political Idaho.
The canyon between the two put a BSU president, any BSU president, in a difficult spot. Hahn’s immediate predecessors probably could have quite a bit to say about that.
So could people at BSU. Just one occasion was built into the presidential selection process when people at the university could question Hahn directly; it drew about 500 people, which as he remarked is a sign of strong interest.
That interest may not always be easy to manage. A couple of exchanges, as reported in the Idaho Ed News, make the point.
One student, a self-described conservative, said people in that group often feel outnumbered on campus, and asked how Hahn would protect freedom of expression. (That concern about free expression also cuts the other way in Idaho.) Hahn’s response – that an open atmosphere helps and “when everyone comes, that’s when you have what society looks like” – was not bad but won’t come close to resolving tensions on either side of the political fence. These days, feel-good statements won’t be enough.
Nor will his response to a question about legislative attacks on diversity and inclusion: That he wants to see a welcoming university, but that state laws have to be obeyed. He was trying to thread a needle, but wound up making an internally conflicfting statement.
The arrival of a new university president is always marked by a small tide of optimism. But the challenges ahead are likely to be large, and as Hahn hits the ground he will have his hands full.
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