The committee, composed of five trustees, three faculty members, one staff member, three undergraduate students and a student of the external degree program, will make a recommendation to the board as to whether Witherspoon should be rehired when his term expires next year.

The report is expected to come in at the next trustee meeting, tentatitively set for Oct. 8.

A move by outgoing trustee John Turner (who is also a faculty member) to delegate to the committee the power to hire a new president, never got off the ground.

The failure of the move is seen as an indication of support for Witherspoon by the trustees.

The trustees named to the committee are Board Chairman Lois Sontag of Stamford, Conn.; Annes Stokes of West Chesterfield, N.H.; Melber Chambers of New York City; Christopher Jenks of Cambridge, Mass.; and James Dixon, president of Antioch College in Ohio.

The other members previously elected by the faculty and students were appointed officially by the board.

In other action, the board approved Witherspoon's proposed $4.2 million budget for fiscal 1972. The budget includes $250,000 for capital construction, for a new community center on the Northwood Campus and a fine arts building.

Also, John Downs of St. Johnsbury was elected a member of the board. He was not present at the meeting, however, and his election is subject to his acceptance.