ODU picks interim head Broderick as 8th president

[Blue_Tires]

NORFOLK

After serving as acting president for almost a year, John Broderick received a unanimous vote from Old Dominion University's Board of Visitors Monday to become its eighth president.

Broderick, 52, has worked at the university for more than 15 years, formerly as a vice president and chief of staff for Roseann Runte, who left ODU last summer for a similar post at Carleton University in Ottawa, Canada.

Broderick was not officially in the running for ODU's top job. He had not been included on earlier short lists, and as a member of the search committee to find a new president, he was prohibited from being a candidate. He also had no previous experience as a college president.

But Broderick said Monday that when he took the job last June, he didn't see himself as simply a placeholder.

"I didn't let the interim-acting get in the way of what I was doing," he said.

Broderick was told about two weeks ago that he was being considered for the job. His appointment was effective immediately and he will receive $312,000 annually, a $30,000 increase from his salary as acting president. His contract will run through June 2011.

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/05/odu-picks-interim-head-broderick-8th-president?t=1242748825