Canadian academic Janyne Hodder is about to be named as the new president of The College of The Bahamas, according to sources close to the institution.
Guardian sources revealed last night that the controversial candidate will officially be dubbed head of the country’s premier tertiary institution, but Minister of Education Alfred Sears seemed to be hesitant in talking about the issue and said he could not confirm the reports. “I cannot confirm it at this point,” he said. “I know that The Council is engaged in a search right now but you’ll need to call the chairman of COB. They’re supposed to be reporting to me by the end of the week, so I will know [who will be the new president] by the end of the week. I need to hear from COB first so I cannot make any comment at this time. If you quote me, it could only be that I have no comments at this time.”
Calls to COB Council Chairman Franklyn Wilson went unanswered up to press time but he made the announcement on Tuesday that a new president will be named by this weekend. While Mr Wilson declined to identify this mystery person, he revealed that, “This is a person who has broad support to serve in this role.” Since Mr Wilson’s comments, information has been pouring into The Guardian newsroom from people in and around the college community that Ms Hodder has been named the new president of The College of The Bahamas.
Born in Montreal and educated in both French and English, she holds a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of Arts (Educational Psychology) from McGill University. ﾠDespite her credentials, Ms Hodder’s bid to become COB’s next president has sparked controversy. Since the day her candidacy was announced almost two months ago, union leaders have voiced their displeasure. More than 150 COB faculty and staff members ﾠwalked out of a meeting in March, after College Council Chairman Franklyn Wilson invited Ms Hodder onto the ﾠstage to address them. An uproar ensued after the Union of Tertiary Educators of The Bahamas and the COB Union of Students claimed the candidates were not being equally assessed.
The controversy escalated after UTEB and COBUS rallied with hundreds of students at Rawson Square during a meeting of the House of Assembly. The fallout prompted Ms Hodder to leave the country just days after she threw her hat into the ring. Weeks later rumours began to circulate that Ms Hodder would be COB’s next president after it was revealed that she received a quiet recommendation from Cabinet.
Around that time The Guardian approached Ms Hodder to comment on the possibility of her taking up the presidential post.
She replied via e-mail: “I am writing to say what I would have said on the telephone, [which is] that I have no information to offer and no comment to make and would ask that you respect my privacy. Thank you for the consideration and best regards.’
By IANTHIA SMITH & JASMIN BONIMY
