Secrecy is more of a habit than a necessity.

Since University of Illinois officials contend it can't be done, it's always fun to point out when officials at other universities conduct a public search for a new president.

The University of Maine is the latest institution of higher education to publicly identify the four finalists for its presidency.

Maine ultimately hired Paul Ferguson, vice chancellor at Southern Illinois University. He'll receive a two-year contract paying $250,000 a year and take office in June.

The three other finalists are Donald Farish, president of Rowan University in New Jersey; Daniel Julius, vice president for academic affairs at the University of Alaska System of Higher Education; and James Page, chief executive officer of James W. Sewell Co. in Maine.

Maine has 12,000 undergraduate and graduate students, and it bears little resemblance in size to the University of Illinois.

But like other public universities that take a similar approach, it has shown that it is possible to attract a pool of solid candidates and do so in an open manner.

Having never done that, the UI officials have insisted that an open search is impossible because those who might be interested in a top job here either would withdraw or not apply if they thought their names would be disclosed. But the UI's approach has more to do with its tradition of secret searches than any realistic fear about being unable to attract great applicants.