A month and a half after former Secretary Lawrence M. Small read the writing on the wall and left the Smithsonian Institution with his tail between his legs and an investigation committee on his back, the Smithsonian board of regents has begun its search for his replacement. The Associated Press reports that the search committee, formed yesterday but not fully yet, will include six board members, including Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), and one of Chief Justice John Roberts’ aides — the Chief Justice traditionally serves as head of the board of regents.
At the same time, the board will continue to deal with repercussions both from Small’s gross financial misuse and the ongoing organizational problems that resulted in a brutal report on the state of the museums. Instead of looking to funding they don’t have, the Institute plans to restructure their leadership roles and responsibilities, in the hopes that more and better oversight will keep the museum’s treasures protected.
The restructuring and choice of new Secretary are inherently related, and it seems somewhat strange that the Smithsonian representatives are spending their quotes reassuring the public that a new system of governance won’t scare off potential candidates. If wannabe Secretaries are put off that the Institute will no longer tolerate people who make up fake mortgages on houses they own outright in order to claim $1.1 million in expenses, or who stand idly by while historical documents are water damaged in an office decorated with feathers of endangered birds, well, good. Scare them off.
It’s no big secret that Smithsonian employees nearly threw parties in the street when Small packed his bags, and word around the water cooler was that Cristián Samper, now acting Secretary and head of the National Museum of Natural History, a man with backgrounds in both organization leadership and science, was a good choice. However, there’s no word right now if the search committee will consider Samper, or if he even wants the job.
We’ll get to hear all the dirty laundry when the committee investigating Small’s financial dalliances announces their findings to the rest of the board on June 11. In the meantime, the search committee will round out their numbers with folks from the Institution’s museums and research centers, and begin looking for someone who will run this massive organization with, hopefully, something more than idle indifference.
Photo by internationalbingoplayboy.
