Selecting a new Trustee

Since 1972, the Duke Board of Trustees has benefited from having recent or current students serve as Young Trustees. Soon, undergraduate students will select a new Young Trustee in a campus-wide election—rather than through a committee process as in the past. As students consider their choices, I’d like to share with the Duke community a few thoughts on the criteria Trustees use when selecting new members of the Board.

Good Trustees are broad-thinkers. While having experience with a particular constituency (in the case of Young Trustees, the student body), Trustees are asked not to be advocates for that constituency, but for Duke as a whole—always thinking of what is best to support the overall mission of the University. They have an interest in the role of the University in society, respect how universities are administered and governed and are interested in the issues research universities face today. Trustees speak and think independently, are able to discuss tough issues in a candid, confidential, but friendly manner and value collegiality, knowing the importance of being a member of a group and respecting other members. They exercise good judgment and restraint. As representatives of the University, they embody the values that define Duke such as integrity, dedication, courage and respect for people of different backgrounds and cultures.

  In my tenure on the Board, the Young Trustees have been recent graduates during the time they served as Trustees. I have found their perspectives always valuable and insightful: They are close enough to the experience of being a student while also eager to begin the work of ensuring that Duke continues to be a vital institution for future generations of students. Whoever is elected this year, I look forward to welcoming the Young Trustee to the Board in the fall, and to that Young Trustee’s invaluable contribution to Duke.

Dan Blue Chair, Board of Trustees