Sources in Tallahassee have shared that University of West Florida Trustee Chair Rebecca Matthews has been directed to hire a Moscow, Idaho company, RedBalloon, to do the university’s presidential search.
Who’s RedBalloon?
RedBalloon is a job board and recruiter that is officially recognized as a recruiting partner by the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS).
- We were unable to find any public institutions of higher learning in Florida that have utilized RedBalloon for a presidential search. We couldn’t see that the company had done any public college presidential searches anywhere.
From its About page: “Founded in 2021, RedBalloon has quickly grown into America’s largest and most successful non-woke job board and talent connector. RedBalloon is the marketplace’s answer to the divisive and toxic ‘cancel culture’ invading the American workplace.”
ACCS has affiliations in various ways with 10 colleges: Arizona Christian University (Glendale, AZ), Cairn University (Langhorne, PA), Gutenberg College (Seattle, WA), George Fox University (Newberg, OR), Colorado Christian University (Denver, CO), Christ College (Sattellite Beach, FL), Patrick Henry College (Purcellville, VA), New Saint Andrews College (Moscow, ID), New College Franklin (Franklin, TN), and Bethlehem College & Seminary (Minneapolis, MN).
- None of them is of the caliber of the University of West Florida.
Endorsed by Donald Trump Jr.
The Douglas Wilson Connection
In my research of Boise State professor Scott Yenor, who preceded Matthews as UWF Trustee chair until he resigned in April, I met Heath Druzin, creator and host of the podcast Extremely American, who talked about his reporting on Douglas Wilson, head of Christ Church in Moscow and a leader of the National Christian Movement.
Wilson created the Association of Classical Christian Schools (ACCS), which has over 500 Christian schools, according to its media kit.
He has publicly supported and promoted RedBalloon. Wilson has shared and endorsed RedBalloon’s mission and advertisements through his blog and social media, referring to the company as “friends” and highlighting its work.
The “Christian Industrial Complex”
Heath Druzin and his co-reporter James Dawson coined the term “Christian industrial complex” to describe Wilson’s far-reaching national empire. The scope of Wilson’s influence is “pretty astonishing” when you examine it:
- Education Network: Wilson runs an association of fundamentalist schools with nearly 500 Christian schools across the country
- Classical Christian Schools: He leads the Association of Classical Christian Schools, which is very influential
- Church Network: Wilson created the Communion of Reformed Evangelical Churches, with churches in almost every state and several foreign countries
- High-Level Connections: Pete Hegseth (Secretary of Defense) sends his kids to Wilson’s schools and attends a church in Wilson’s association.
RedBalloon plugs into Wilson’s empire by supplying teachers and staff for a network of K-12 classical Christian schools. The company has rapidly grown since its founding in 2021, boasting thousands of employers and tens of thousands of job seekers using its platform.
- However, external analysis suggests that the number of active job listings is relatively small compared to those on major job boards.
In November 2021, The Guardian reported that RedBalloon founder and CEO Andrew Crapuchettes was an elder of Wilson’s Christ Church.
Why RedBalloon at UWF?
That’s the question I asked my sources. No one knows, except for Rebecca Matthews.
UWF is the third-best university in Florida, tied with Florida State. There should be plenty of educators who want to succeed, Dr. Saunders. The university is definitely worthy of a higher caliber search firm than a four-year-old job board run out of Moscow, Idaho.
Who has done the other presidential searches for Florida’s universities?
- SP&A Executive Search has played a recurring role, helping the University of Florida.
- Korn Ferry, a global consulting firm, was engaged by USF for its latest presidential search.
- Myers McRae Executive Search and Consulting was selected to lead the search at FAMU.
- The Florida International University Board of Trustees engaged R. William Funk & Associates, a Texas-based firm specializing in executive searches for higher education, to assist in finding its next president.
- Buffkin/Baker did the search for Florida Atlantic.
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