HELENA -- Gov. Brian Schweitzer is planning a series of meetings on university campuses to gather input from students, faculty and university employees as he seeks to replace John Mercer on the state Board of Regents.

Mercer, a former Republican speaker of the House and Polson lawyer, abruptly resigned from the board earlier this month in a sharply worded letter to Schweitzer that took many in the governor's office and the higher education community by surprise.

Mercer's term on the board was to have ended in February 2008. His one-year term as chairman would have ended in May.

Schweitzer hopes to appoint a replacement before the board's next meeting at Montana State University-Northern in May.

On Tuesday, the governor said he wants a more inclusive search process than previous administrations.

''Higher education affects everyone in Montana,'' Schweitzer said, ''although probably disproportionately in towns like Missoula, Bozeman and Dillon and Havre.''

Student leaders at the University of Montana asked the governor to include students in the process of selecting Mercer's replacement in a resolution passed unanimously late last week, saying ''a student-focused board member is very important for the future of higher education in Montana.''

The resolution asked Schweitzer to allow three students enrolled in state university system schools to represent fellow students during the recruitment and interview process.

Schweitzer didn't speak specifically to the ASUM resolution Tuesday, but said he wants to hear from all sides on the issue, and added that appointing former Republican legislators like Mercer to the board hasn't worked in the past.

Mercer was one of three former GOP lawmakers selected by former Republican Gov. Judy Martz during her four-year term. The others were Mike Foster and Lila Taylor.

''I think that experiment failed,'' Schweitzer said. ''They brought a partisan discussion to everything that came up about higher education, so that's out.''

The governor said he won't exclude former lawmakers from consideration, but added: ''I doubt I'll choose one'' for Mercer's post.

State law requires that no more than four members of the Board of Regents be affiliated with the same political party. Currently, Foster and Taylor are listed as Republican board members, while Regents Stephen Barrett and Lynn Morrison-Hamilton are listed as Democrats and Regent Mark Semmens as an independent. Student Regent Heather O'Loughlin, who was appointed by Schweitzer in January, does not list a political affiliation.

Schweitzer said politics isn't as important to him as someone who shares his ideas on affordability, accessibility, transferability of credits and making university classes relevant to Montana communities.

''If people share my vision and have competence for the job, I don't care if they're Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or vegetarian,'' he said.

In his resignation letter, Mercer, a frequent critic of Schweitzer, questioned the governor's involvement with the board and challenged him to push for a university system budget in which the state pays at least half the cost of education.

''If you value higher education as you say you do, you will fund it,'' Mercer wrote.