KAIST faculty members have expressed regret over the failed presidential appointment.
The KAIST Faculty Council said in a statement on the 5th that "the prolonged delay in presidential selection poses a significant burden on KAIST's stable operations and the pursuit of mid-to-long-term development strategies."
The council stated, "We express disappointment that the lengthy candidate selection process and the efforts of those involved were not sufficiently respected in reaching this conclusion," and presented principles and standards that must be upheld in the re-recruitment process.
KAIST held a presidential election on the 26th of last month, but it was rejected as no candidate secured a majority of votes. Three candidates were on the ballot: current President Lee Kwang-hyung, Professor Kim Jung-ho of KAIST's School of Electrical Engineering, and former Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST) President Lee Yong-hoon. Following the failed vote, President Lee submitted his resignation on the 27th. Accordingly, starting from the 17th, KAIST will transition to a system where Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs Lee Kyun-min serves as acting president.
In the statement, the council emphasized, "The president must be more than a simple administrative head—a leader with the capability to guide the vision and strategy of a research-focused university with the consensus of its members, based on KAIST's unique characteristics." The council made clear that the ability to realize a vision grounded in deep understanding of KAIST's distinctive research ecosystem and talent development system as a specialized science and technology university should be the core criterion for presidential selection.
The council stressed, "The board of directors' authority to appoint the president must be exercised with KAIST's development as its foremost priority," urging prudent and responsible judgment from the government and board regarding the re-recruitment process. The council also presented specific demands: public disclosure of the re-recruitment schedule, procedures, and evaluation criteria; reflecting vision implementation capability based on deep understanding of KAIST as the core criterion for presidential selection; and guaranteeing participation of KAIST members in the Presidential Candidate Search Committee.
A total of 252 of KAIST's 740 full-time faculty members participated in this statement. Executive Vice President Lee Kyun-min informed KAIST faculty of this development and said, "As acting president, I will do my utmost to ensure KAIST's stable operations and the continuity of academic and research activities remain unshaken until the next president is appointed."