The University of Wisconsin is drawing criticism from Black community leaders in Madison over the schoolβs pick of Chris McIntosh as the new athletic director to succeed Barry Alvarez.
The Black Leadership Council of Dane County, Urban League of Greater Madison president and CEO Ruben Anthony said Chancellor Rebecca Blank had lost an opportunity to address the concerns of Black students at the school.
Anthony said Blank sowed distrust through a less than transparent process in picking Alvarezβs replacement.
βShe said if anybody lobbied for a candidate, they would disqualify that candidate and Barry openly lobbied (for McIntosh) from the start to the finish with no retribution,β Anthony told The Capital Times. βWhy didnβt she disqualify his candidate? Why did she allow him to do that?β
Anthony said Blank blocked a more diverse search committee, saying the decision belonged entirely to Alvarez.
βUltimately, it was his pick,β Anthony said.
Blank defended the process in a statement.
βOur process during the athletic director search was open and fair, guided by a diverse search committee, including current and former Athletic Board chairs, alumni and former student athletes,β Blank said. βThis group worked hard to recruit a diverse group of candidates for the role and recommended final candidates to me. People weigh in on nearly every hiring decision I make, but ultimately I hire the candidate who has the best credentials, talent and experience to build upon our success."
McIntosh, who is white, was an All-American offensive lineman from Wisconsin. He was part of the Badgers teams that went to back-to-back Rose Bowls in 1999 and 2000. McIntosh joined the UW Athletic Department in 2014, a move many believed was part of Alvarez grooming him for the AD position.
βChris McIntosh has and will continue to be a leader in diversity, equity and inclusion,β Blank said in the statement. βHe initiated the Athletic Departmentβs diversity & inclusion strategic plan, helped found the new Equity and Diversity Council within the department and has assured me that he will tackle this area with new energy and approaches.β
Anthony said his comments werenβt meant to be critical of McIntosh, but the BLC underscored in its statement that 10 Black staffers and assistant coaches have left the athletic department in recent years.
βStudents and coaches are complaining. Weβve seen a mass exodus of Black coaches. McIntosh and Barry have done this together,β Anthony said. βAgain, this whole approach to allowing a process in a public university to just be dictated and decided by an outgoing athletic director rubs people the wrong way. McIntosh might end up being a good athletic director, but the process stinks.β