Halasek to assume leadership of Honors and Scholars

Executive Vice President and Provost Edward J. Ray has recommended to President Brit Kirwan the appointment of Kay Halasek as associate provost for Honors and Scholars at Ohio State. Kirwan will ask the University's Board of Trustees to approve the appointment at its next meeting on Aug. 29. Pending board approval, the appointment will be effective Sept. 1 through June 30, 2005.

Halasek, associate professor of English, director of first-year writing in the Department of English and secretary of the faculty, will succeed Dan Farrell, who has held the associate provost post in both interim and full-time capacities for two years. Farrell, a professor of philosophy and former department chair, is returning to full-time teaching.

"Kay has been identified as someone who had both the credentials and the experience necessary to continue the successes that the Honors and Scholars programs have achieved," said Ray, noting that during her 11-year tenure at Ohio State, Halasek has worked closely with Honors and Scholars students, both as a composition teacher and as a Mount Scholars mentor. "The search committee and I are convinced that she is well-prepared to lead the center and to build on the exceptional work of Dan Farrell and his colleagues in the Honors and Scholars Center."

Kay Halasek will assume the role of associate provost for Honors and Scholars.

A specialist in composition pedagogy, Halasek received the Conference on College Composition and Communication 2001 Outstanding Book Award for her book, A Pedagogy of Possibility. She also was a 1996 recipient of the University's Kathryn T. Schoen Award for professional development. Active in University governance, Halasek was appointed secretary of the faculty in January 2000, serving as adviser to and advocate for faculty and encouraging more faculty participation in governance.

The associate provost position was created in 1999 as Ohio State expanded its Honors-related programming to reach a significantly larger population of students through development of new Scholars initiatives. In the new post, Halasek will oversee maintenance, development and expansion of specialized curricula and programs.

The Honors program attracts high-achieving students and offers them a personal, tailored academic experience within the larger university environment. About 4,000 Honors students annually are enrolled in 180 Honors courses across the University. These students often participate in significant research as undergraduates, many of them presenting the results of their work at the Denman Undergraduate Research Forum held every spring. From these opportunities, many students go on to postgraduate work in the professions or in graduate programs here or at other prestigious universities.

The Scholars programs attract high academic achievers who come to Ohio State because of a special talent or a focused interest in a specific topic. To date, almost 500 students have participated in four Scholars programs -- the Mount Leadership Society, health sciences, humanities and arts interdisciplinary. Four new programs emphasizing biological sciences, communication technology, liberal arts and tomorrow's teachers are scheduled to launch this autumn. Ohio State's goal is to enroll 20 percent of first-quarter freshmen into Scholars programs.

"Dan Farrell was a driving force behind the development of these new Scholars initiatives as he oversaw the expansion of the Honors program into the Honors and Scholars Center," said Martha Garland, vice provost and dean for undergraduate studies, to whom the associate provost reports. "All of us involved in the academic enterprise owe him our thanks for his tremendous dedication in establishing these valuable new learning communities for our students. And we are very lucky to have persuaded Kay Halasek to agree to move these initiatives forward and to create other opportunities for our strongest students."

Ashe joins Cleveland Museum of Art

Janet Ashe, vice president for business and finance, will be leaving the University to join the Cleveland Museum of Art as deputy director for administration and treasurer, effective Sept. 15.

Ashe joined Ohio State in 1992 from Eastern Michigan University in Ypsilanti, where she was vice president for business and finance and treasurer.

"For nearly a decade, Janet has dedicated her talents and energies toward managing our resources and improving our facilities and services," said President Brit Kirwan. "She has done a wonderful job and she will be missed."

At the museum, Ashe will provide leadership and strategic direction for financial policies and advancing the museum's strategic and facilities master plan, including a major expansion and renovation.

Ashe said she is most proud of the work she has done in connection with the stadium renovation and with the quality program she initiated in Business and Finance. "The stadium is one-of-a-kind, and has been not only restored to its original grandeur, but improved in so many ways. And the University now has a large number of employees trained in quality and customer service," she said. "I am grateful to have had the opportunity to work with such talented people."

William J. Shkurti, senior vice president for business and finance, praised Ashe's efforts. "The work Janet has done on making the campus a better environment, in both a physical sense and in her commitment to quality, will benefit the University for years to come," he said. Shkurti said an announcement will be forthcoming about how the functions Ashe performed will be continued.

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