In October 2009, the President of The King’s College, Stan Oakes, began a sabbatical to capture the history and formative ideas of the College in writing. Upon Oakes’ announcement, The Board of Trustees hired professional search consultant Bruce Dingman to undertake a nation-wide search for the fifth president of the College. Dingman is considered to be among the top executive search professionals in the world. The Chairman of the Board of Trustees, Andy Mills, assumed the role of Interim President during the search.

The Board also created a Search Committee, representing various constituents of The King’s College. Chaired by John Beckett, the committee was comprised of the following:

• John Beckett, Interim Chairman of the Board of Trustees
• John Spier, Board of Trustees & Class of 1972
• Allie Hanley, Board of Trustees
• Bailey Marks, Board of Trustees
• Stan Oakes, President (on sabbatical)
• Andy Mills, Interim President
• Dr. Marvin Olasky, Presidential Scholar
• Brian Parker, Vice President of Admissions
• Dr. Robert Jackson, Associate Professor of Education
• Andrew Schatz, Student Body President
• Elizabeth Lindow, Vice President of the Alumni Executive Committee & class of 2007
• Susan Humphries, Parent’s Leadership Council (Immediate Past Co- Chair)

Mr. Dingman interacted with the various constituent groups represented by the Search Committee and ascertained the qualities that the various groups desired in a new president. From these meetings, he created the “Opportunity Profile,” which described the perfect candidate for President of The King’s College.

After he circulated it among thousands of potential candidates, he narrowed the list down to several hundred with whom he detected some interest. Ultimately, he interviewed ten candidates in person and presented the top four to the Search Committee.

Over two days, each of the top four candidates interviewed with the Search Committee, who ultimately recommended Dinesh D’Souza as their top choice. The Board of Trustees unanimously approved the appointment, which was announced to the public in August 2010.