The University is conducting a national search to find a new senior vice president for advancement after Steven King '91 resigned from the post in July. This turnover is one of several administrative changes over the last few months accompanying the University's presidential transition.
King quietly stepped down after two years in the position, announcing his departure in a letter written to senior staff and others on campus, said Richard Spies, who is currently serving as interim senior vice president for advancement.
Both Spies and Marisa Quinn, vice president of public affairs and University relations, declined to comment on the reasons for King's departure.
"I can't speculate, and I can't read between the lines," Spies said. King could not be reached for comment.
Spies, who served under former President Ruth Simmons as executive vice president for planning and senior adviser to the president , also announced his resignation from the post in July. Spies said he knew he would resign "10 plus years ago" when he took the job under Simmons, he said, adding that he had decided to step down long before he found out who the new president would be.
Though Spies was set to leave the University after he stepped down in July, he was called back by the administrative team when King resigned. Spies was asked to fill the interim role as senior vice president for advancement while the University searched for a permanent replacement.
"I was still in the neighborhood," Spies said. "All they really needed was someone who knew Brown pretty well, who knew the people and who could help provide some transition support."
Spies said the transition was smooth.
"It wasn't as if they needed someone to come in and suddenly rewrite the playbook for them. The playbook was pretty good," he said.
The search for a new vice president for advancement began during the summer and, administrators hope, will reach its conclusion by the end of the fall semester, Quinn wrote in an email to The Herald. The firm Spencer Stuart is assisting the University in the search, Quinn added. The University also contracted with Spencer Stuart last year when searching for a new president.
Spies plans to leave the interim position in December and pass the reins over to the new hire when the search is concluded.
In the future, Spies hopes to find an initiative-based position at another University or organization, similar to the interim position he has been filling this year, he said.
Despite the leadership turnover, Spies said he doesn't expect any major initiatives or campaigns to stall.
"The more visible initiatives are very much moving forward," Spies said, citing engineering and humanities campaigns, along with residential life improvements. "They're getting, if anything, more attention during this transition," he said.
"I think one thing you learn about advancement is there is no such thing as normal," he said. "Every year has its own intensity, and this year certainly does."
