Thursday, 4:30 PM
UMass trustees approve Meehan's nomination
(Dominic Chavez/Globe Staff)
Martin T. Meehan, pictured above on Tuesday at press conference at Logan International Airport, will leave Congress after seven terms to lead the University of Massachusetts at Lowell.
By James Vaznis, Globe Staff
WORCESTER - US Representative Martin T. Meehan's nomination to be the next chancellor of the University of Massachusetts at Lowell was unanimously approved today by school's board of trustees, bringing the seven-term incumbent back to his alma mater and igniting the first competitive fight for a Bay State congressional district in six years.
The 19-voting members of the board ratified Meehan's appointment at about 11 a.m. Jack M. Wilson, UMass president, announced Tuesday that he had chosen Meehan after a search that began with nearly 80 candidates.
"I truly believe Marty Meehan has the experience, intellect, passion, and vision to be a superb new leader for the Lowell campus," Wilson told the trustees today before the vote.
The Lowell native promised university leaders that he would devote much of his time to raising money, particularly to fund teaching and scholarship on nanotechnology, biomanufacturing, and several other new sciences that are the focus of the school's development plans.
"Every time I walk on campus, I come up with ideas," Meehan told the trustees after they approved his nomination. "I will work very hard every minute to make you all proud and the university proud."
Meehan indicated Tuesday that he would take the job and leave Congress by July 1. "The decision to leave the House has been the most difficult professional decision of my life," he said. "But I believe ultimately that education and a technology-driven, highly literate workforce will determine the fate of my region, the region where I grew up."
Meehan's departure from Congress started what promises to be a competitive campaign. At least seven Democrats and three Republicans are already vying to take his place, including three state representatives, a mayor, a former mayor, and a veteran sheriff. Political analysts estimate the eventual nominees will have to raise between $1 million and $2.5 million each.
The highest profile candidate so far is Niki Tsongas, a Democrat and the widow of US senator Paul Tsongas. She has signed on Doug Rubin, senior strategist for Governor Deval Patrick's campaign, and has attracted big-name donors.
Meehan, 50, was first elected in 1993 and had a career on Capitol Hill that included historic legislation on campaign finance reform and tobacco control. Meehan will leave behind a new Democratic majority in Congress, where he recently took over as leader of a key House Armed Services subcommittee.
Salary and benefits still have to be negotiated, but Wilson said Meehan would probably earn slightly more than the previous chancellor, William T. Hogan. Hogan's salary was $235,800, and he also received a $28,000 housing allowance. As a representative, Meehan earns $165,200 a year.
Before heading to Washington, Meehan served in the Middlesex district attorney's office and as a deputy secretary of state. He and his wife, Ellen T. Murphy, have two sons.
Meehan's interest in the job initially drew skepticism from some professors and members of the search committee, who were concerned that a politician might not have the necessary skills to lead the 11,000-student university. Meehan graduated from UMass-Lowell in 1978; he also has a master's degree in public policy and a law degree from Suffolk University,
The two other finalists for the position were David C. Chang, chancellor of Polytechnic University in Brooklyn, and Nabil A. Ibrahim, vice chancellor of academic affairs at Purdue University's campus in Calumet, Ind.
According to search committee members, Meehan converted skeptics during interviews and in a meeting with faculty, staff, and students on campus last week, when he shared his personal story as a son of working-class parents who earned a degree at Lowell and later secured millions of dollars in federal grants for his alma mater.
During his campus visit last week, Meehan said he intends to spend half his time fund raising. In the past four years, budget cuts have shrunk the university's fund-raising operation from 22 full-time employees to 15. Despite the cuts, the university has met or slightly exceeded its goals for the three previous years and has raised $5.4 million, or 60 percent of its target goal, this fiscal year.
Since Meehan won office in 1993, UMass-Lowell has received more than $200 million in federal funds, much of it for scientific programs championed by the congressman.
Officials in the Merrimack Valley, which has struggled with a steady loss of manufacturing jobs, said they hoped a galvanized UMass-Lowell would translate into economic benefits for the region by attracting high-tech businesses.
