The tale of two Presidents: whose leadership will endure?

Leon Botstein, President of Bard College

The recent New Yorker piece about charismatic Bard College President Leon Botstein, asks whether Botstein, who transformed Bard College during his almost four decade long tenure as President, can insure that the institution outlasts him? It appears that Botstein - a genuine idealist who believes in the value of an affordable liberal arts education - has taken Bard College to where it is now primarily on the strength of his personal charisma. As the time for his retirement looms, the future of Bard College is uncertain because of its poor financial health. In the past most donors supported the College because of their personal affiliation with Botstein, rather than to the college.

Contrast Botstein to another charismatic president in the area, John Sexton at NYU. Sexton, with his strong Jesuit values, wants to create global citizens, and has over the last decade expanded NYU at a breathless pace not just in its neighboring NYC area, but also in Abu Dhabi and China. Except that he lost the confidence of his faculty in the process, and will step down in 2016 when his current contract expires. Sexton already has in place his post retirement plans - he will work for education for the needy. NYU has climbed up in rankings since he came in, has a solid reputation globally with its Abu Dhabi and China campus up and running. There seems to be no reason at this point to worry about its continuing rise in the rankings.

John Sexton, President of NYU

How will we judge these two men as leaders? In some ways comparing the two is akin to comparing apples and oranges - Bard has 2000 students, while NYU has over 50,00. Yet as individuals these men share remarkable similarities - both have strong values about the importance of  a liberal arts education, freedom of speech, are charismatic and larger than life, caring in their personal relationships (Sexton is a big hugger), great speakers almost in love with their own voices. Why has their appeal on their followers then been so different? Kouzes and Posner in their book on leadership rightly talk about credibility as the foundation of leadership. It appears that Sexton, was in part brought down by not walking the talk. Blinded by his desire to attract world class faculty to New York, murmurs are rampant about the outlandish pay and low interest loans to select faculty, while tuitions have skyrocketed resulting in an alarming rate of student drop outs. NYU faculty also accuse Sexton of non- transparency, and for establishing campuses in countries with dictatorial regimes- Sexton argues that he is respecting local traditions.While Sexton claims to not have any possessions other than his pension, the New Yorker article featuring Sexton, notes his perks, including a first among equal status with Emirates Airlines.

Another important difference between the two lies in their ability to make their followers buy into their vision, by letting them observe the fruits of their labor. Despite the grumblings of Bard college faculty about the abrasive style of Botstein, they see the difference they are making. One glowing example is the Bard Prison Initiative (BPI) which runs "college in prisons" programs in nine states, and offers the same course content to prisoners as the regular students receive, and has an admirable ratio of graduation to enrollment. The guiding philosophy for this initiative is that critical readers learn to be better self critics, which in turn reduces recidivism. NYU faculty on the other hand do not see the immediate purpose of their seemingly meaningless expansion except in rising student tuitions and drop out rates. 

This is a story of two leaders whose legacies are in question for different reasons - Botstein's because of the uncertain future of the organization he leaves behind, Sexton's because of his personal leadership style. Aristotle rightly points out that we cannot judge a man's life until they are dead, or in some cases even after they are dead. Thus it is too early to pass judgment on Bonstein or Sexton. But Bonstein seems more likely to prevail because his personal values have not yet come under the scanner. Sexton seems to have lost his credibility along the way, and the NYU faculty will try everything in their control to erase his legacy when he is gone, and perhaps even undo his vision. Sexton, like may other charismatic leaders seems to have overlooked his most important constituency - his faculty. Perhaps he will learn from this experience and redeem himself in his future projects. Watch this space for updates.