The College of DuPage is about to be taken in a new direction.

Robert Breuder will become the college’s fifth president, succeeding Sunil Chand, who was removed in May. Breuder will take over the post Jan. 1, after leaving his position as president of William Rainey Harper College in Palatine.

“My leadership style (is that I’m) straight up, direct and no-nonsense,” Breuder said Nov. 18 at the press conference after members of the Board of Trustees approved his contract. “I’m caring, sensitive and thoughtful. … If I’m going to work with diligence and full commitment, I do not tolerate people who don’t give (all) of themselves.”

Breuder said he’s not yet interested in bringing in a new staff.

“I don’t know if there’s a need to bring anyone in. I’m hoping we have all the talent in-house that we need,” he said. “When I went to Harper, I brought no one with me. COD didn’t get to where it is today without talented people.”

There was some controversy over the board asking Chand to step down, with students and faculty very upset over the decision.

“You have to deal with that straight up, not ignore it,” Breuder said of the issue. “You have to put the people in the room and deal with the issue straight on. The outcome may be something someone dislikes. … It’s not my role to decide what an English teacher should and should not do. … They need to respect the role and function of the Board of Trustees.”

Board Chairman Micheal McKinnon said trustees were pleased with their selection of Breuder.

“The distinguished backgrounds of each of our five finalists made this process a difficult one; however, we are extremely confident with our final choice and look forward to incorporating Dr. Breuder’s leadership, drive and vision into continued success for the college,” McKinnon said.

Breuder said that because he has not yet begun at the school, he could not elaborate on future plans for it, such as whether it should become a four-year institution.

“I don’t know what I’m going to take on, but that will become clear to me,” he said.

One issue brewing at COD that Breuder will have to face early on is a growing opposition to proposed changes to the school’s policy manual.

Trustees are considering revisions they say will update and steamline decades-old policies, but some students and faculty counter the changes could limit their free speech on campus.

New policies would raise the cost of some classes, put the school newspaper under the president’s control and give trustees oversight of establishing curriculum.

Last week, about 100 people attended a Board of Trustees meeting to contest the policies. With black tape over their mouths, about 50 student demonstrators lined the walls while teachers, students and community members spoke out.

The protest was one step, student leaders said. COD’s Student Leadership Council will keep trying to raise the student body’s attention, and student leaders are planning to follow up with the American Civil Liberties Union, said second-year student Ivana Miljic, who is coordinator of finance for the student council.

“The protest was just sort of an attention-getter,” Miljic said. “But by no means is this over.”

Staff writer Brian Hudson contributed to this article.