Brogan might become chancellor

With state Sen. Jim King off the short list, a new name is creating buzz as a prospect for the State University System chancellorship: Frank Brogan.

The former lieutenant governor has served as Florida Atlantic University’s president since 2003. He and the Board of Governors seem to be encouraging the speculation.

“He would absolutely be the perfect candidate, exactly what the university system would need,” said Norman Tripp, a former FAU Board of Trustees chairman who now sits on the BOG. “He's got years of educational background and terrific political skills.”

An FAU spokeswoman told reporters that Brogan has been approached about the job and is considering it.

Add this to the signs that Brogan might apply for the position: he recently stepped down from the BOG's chancellor search committee without an explanation.

If picked, Brogan could be an asset to the BOG’s efforts to repair its credibility problem with the Florida Legislature. He’s widely considered to have gubernatorial ambitions. Lawmakers won’t want to make an enemy of out someone who could, one day, hold the veto pen.

But there’s a catch: Chancellor Brogan would be an employee that the BOG couldn’t fire. If it ever tried to do so, it would mean political suicide for a group that’s already struggling to gain respect.

Also, Brogan isn’t likely to be a heavy-handed leader who’s anxious to tell individual universities what to do. The boards of trustees are filled with businessmen and women who wrote big campaign checks for former Gov. Jeb Bush and current Gov. Charlie Crist. If Brogan is serious about running for governor, he won’t want to burn bridges with those potential contributors.

Along those lines, Brogan might not want to touch thorny issues like the infamous Pappas Plan which called for institutions like FAMU and the University of Central Florida to offer only baccalaureate degrees.

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