UK National Higher Ed Expert Kicks Off Strategic Plan Series

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Jan. 16, 2014) — John Thelin is widely considered one of the country's experts on the history of higher education. In fact, his book ― "A History of American Higher Education" ― is considered one of the field's seminal works and is widely cited.

But Thelin, a professor of educational policy studies in the University of Kentucky College of Education, goes far and wide with his interests and expertise ― from prolific author and frequent contributor to publications such as The New York Times to his undergraduate career at Brown University where he was a varsity wrestler.

A former Provost Teacher's Award winner and recipient of the Alumni Association's Great Teacher Award, Thelin also has been an invited speaker at Princeton’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public Affairs, Harvard University, the University of Georgia, Dartmouth, The Manhattan Institute, and Massachusetts General Hospital’s Institute for Health Professions. 

Thelin is the kick-off speaker on Jan. 21 for the See Tomorrow Strategic Planning Speaker Series. On Jan. 28, David Attis, with Education Advisory Board, will be the second speaker in what will be a monthly series that further highlights the importance of the university's strategic planning process. More than 100 people across the campus are involved with work groups in support of the strategic plan's development. The plan is scheduled for consideration by the Board of Trustees in June.

UKNow recently sat down with Thelin to discuss his upcoming talk at 4 p.m. Tuesday, Jan. 21, in Room 230 of the UK Student Center:

1. What do you expect to address in your talk?

My talk is “Higher Education’s New Deal in the 21stCentury.”  It deals with “The University of Kentucky as a Work in Progress.”

1. What is the importance of a university strategic plan?

Clarity of purpose. A strategic plan gives members of the university community an opportunity to review and renegotiate what the university is ― and what it wishes to be.

1. Anything in particular you would say about its importance relative to UK at this time?

The University of Kentucky is poised to make a difference nationally at a time when all colleges and universities ― and especially public universities ― are expected to do more with less.  It’s a distinctive institution that could serve as a national model of a flagship state research university that also is committed to reforming undergraduate education.  It’s humane in scale and size.

1. In your latest work, “The Rising Costs of Higher Education,” you and a number of scholars talk about some of the cost drivers associated with higher education … in terms of what the university is doing now with strategic planning, how important of an issue is cost/affordability?

We’ve reached the end of an era ― for the past quarter century most universities have relied largely on increased funding to carry out their activities.  That strategy will not suffice in the 21^st century.  The call is for thoughtful balancing of resources and missions.  The primary question facing colleges and universities is not money ― but clarity of educational purpose and mission.

1. What are the other major issues you think are confronting UK right now and the academy more generally?

This is a time for “Higher Education’s New Deal” both internally and externally.  One opportunity for UK is to set the pace on redefining the land grant legacy.

This is part of an ongoing series of articles and stories about "see tomorrow: The University of Kentucky Strategic Plan." Check out the strategic plan website -- (http://www.uky.edu/strategic-plan/) --for the latest information about the compelling vision for UK's future. You can also provide feedback and ask questions at seetomorrow@uky.edu