VP for Human Resources named

John Gould to remain until Sept. 30 Clint Davidson has been named to the position of vice president for Human Resources, Executive Vice President John Fry announced earlier this week. The University's Board of Trustees will vote on Davidson's nomination on September 22. If confirmed, Davidson -- who is currently the associate vice chancellor for Human Resources at Vanderbilt University -- will take over the post October 1. But he will not be on campus full-time until November 1. He will spend the month making his transition from Vanderbilt to the University, Fry said. In his new position, Davidson will be responsible for "the development, implementation and coordination of policies and programs encompassing all aspects of human resource management," according to a University statement. He will essentially be responsible for overseeing the University's employees, which is no small task considering that the University is the largest private employer in Philadelphia, and the fourth-largest in the state. Davidson said he intends to focus his initial attention "on listening and seeing what the primary needs are." John Gould will remain acting vice president for Human Resources until September 30. The post had been vacated last summer when William Holland left the University after two years in the office. Gould has been holding the interim position since October. Gould was unavailable for comment. Davidson comes to the University with more than 25 years of experience in the field. "He really is very deeply experienced in human resources and higher education," Fry said. "He is one of the leading thinkers and practitioners in the field." Fry said he has been involved in the search for a vice president for human resources since his arrival at the University in April. At that time he was presented with the names of four candidates for the position. He said Davidson did not initially apply for the position until the University pursued him as a candidate. Fry added that Davidson made a really positive impression during his interview. "I decided based on meeting with all four candidates that Clint was the one I wanted to bring on," he said. "He really seemed to be a person who really could be very fair relative to employee concerns. "He seemed to have a real heart," Fry added. Davidson said while both Vanderbilt and the University have their own personalities, there are a lot of similarities. "Our universities are only as good as the people a part of the University," he said. He said his goal is to insure that the work environment at the University is conducive to productivity. And Davidson said he is convinced that the University has the kind of leadership to "really make things happen." Davidson has also served as the director of personnel services at the University of Oklahoma, the assistant senior vice president for Administrative Services at the University of Cincinnati Medical Center and the director of the University of Rochester's Personnel and Affirmative Action department.

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