Q & A with President Holbrook

Karen Holbrook and her husband, Jim, don Buckeye hats.   Photos by Jo McCulty

When you decided to seek this position, what interested you most about Ohio State?

The size and range of Ohio State, and the realistic potential for OSU to advance as one of the leading public institutions of higher education in the world. I have always worked in large public universities, and OSU is one of the most comprehensive examples -- it has extensive undergraduate programs, prominent graduate programs, a significant group of professional schools, a robust research enterprise and considerable interaction with the outside community. As a land grant university, it has a statewide mandate for outreach, and it is located in the state capital. Very few schools have this range of activity and breadth of strategic opportunities.

What will be your top priority when you start at Ohio State on Oct. 1?

I will start by listening. You have to get to know the institution and the people. It is not completely new ground -- I have worked as a consultant for the Ohio Board of Regents over the last several years, but that activity, of course, encompassed all state schools. Once I arrive on campus, I will begin learning through contact with all constituencies on and off campus, including the regional campuses. I have been getting a clearer picture of some immediate campus goals through visits to Columbus over the last few weeks.

What is your assessment of the University's Academic Plan?

The emphasis on excellence is exactly right, and the plan is written in a way that increases understanding of the University's goals and needs among our necessary allies outside the University -- in government, the private sector and among our alumni. As I have already said in a different context, several things impress me about the Academic Plan. It recognizes that we are bigger, but specifies that our goal is to promote being better. The plan has a refreshing sense of candor, which results in a more realistic road map for change. I think we can move toward quantifiable goals and benchmarks that aim to exceed our peers in as many areas as possible. I am impressed with the commitment of the campus to the plan and achieving its goals.

How will you seek to improve state funding, given the climate of budget cuts in Ohio?

In the middle of the OSU presidential search process, an article appeared in the Wall Street Journal about the impact of the economic downturn on public universities. It focused particularly on the reduction in the value of endowments at a time when state legislatures have reduced funding for higher education. The article singled out Ohio State as an example, but OSU is representative of a large number of state universities that are feeling these effects. With OSU's ambitious plans for the future, it is clear there are many challenges ahead in gaining support. It will be important for the state's university leaders to make the case that higher education has a central role in improving Ohio's economy and to demonstrate the impact of the funds we receive and our accountability for them.

But I don't think any state institution can simply look to the legislature for its answers and funding. We will also need to be aggressive in expanding funding sources outside the state through development and externally funded research. Both are areas where OSU has demonstrated success to date. We will surely be competing with all major research universities for new resources, thus we must follow the Academic Plan toward enhanced excellence. Excellence will be rewarded in all venues of our mission.

How do you feel about the emphasis in the Academic Plan on recruiting top faculty?

It is important to have a combined approach -- recruit the best while you sustain and build upon the academic environment that supports existing faculty to increase their productivity and stature. Hiring star faculty is often essential to instantaneously replace some long-time institutional stars who retire. Hiring a star often results in bringing a team and attracting top graduate students. It also allows an institution to add a dimension that might be needed to round out or enhance a valuable program. In Georgia, we have been fortunate to have substantial support from the Georgia Research Alliance to hire eminent scholars in the sciences who are likely to participate in economic development. This program became a license to raid the best people anywhere. Importantly, these faculty have often turned out to be excellent teachers, valuable colleagues and contributors to the overall academic culture of the institution.

Trustees Chair James Patterson introduces Karen Holbrook.

What can Ohio State do to improve the environment for undergraduate education?

This is a question that all large research universities are wrestling with, and I was pleased to learn about innovations like the Ohio State Scholars Program, which brings together first-year students with similar interests. While we cannot and should not mimic the small liberal arts college, it is essential to be certain every student has meaningful interactions with faculty. I am aware that our student leaders have championed an effort to stress the importance of faculty-student interactions and I applaud that effort. Across the country, there is a reinvigorated interest in strong undergraduate teaching in the classroom and in other environments. The emphasis is increasingly on learning in a manner that introduces students to the full range of resources of the institution and external to the institution -- co-op experiences, internships, undergraduate research opportunities and study abroad. OSU has the motivation and vision to be a leader in this area.

What has your role been in the area of diversity?

As a vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School at Florida, I supported an Office of Diversity Programs for graduate students that was able, legally, to award targeted fellowships to minority students. Because of our broad range of support activities at UF, I was invited to participate in a national Department of Education conference organized to share strategies for support for minority graduate students. At Georgia, I funded programs that provide research experiences for minority undergraduate students, created the role of the associate provost for institutional diversity and supported the development of a diversity plan. It is important to build institutional support structures, but creating offices to focus specifically on enhancing diversity does not provide assurance of a positive environment for a community of diverse, interdependent people. My firm belief is that support for diversity must be a top-down responsibility, but, more importantly, it is everybody's responsibility.

Has working in the south affected your views about diversity?

Profoundly. When students and faculty in Georgia talk about racial diversity, you sense that they know what they are talking about -- the history is near at hand and complicated. Considerable progress has been and is being made in diversifying UGA and creating a positive environment for all students, but we have to maintain diligence to get where we want to be. The University of Georgia recently commemorated the 40th year since desegregation. Charlayne Hunter-Gault, an international journalist and Georgia alumna, spoke about her experiences as one of the first two African-Americans admitted to the university. Many of those who were involved in this period presented riveting discussions and visual images of those days in Georgia. This event impressed upon me that we must not set our goals low, given what others have been able to achieve before us. We need to reaffirm our commitment continuously to insure that opportunities for students, faculty and staff reflect the demographics of the state and nation.

Do you face special challenges being the first woman president at Ohio State?

I tend not to view my own career as influenced by gender. In my experience as a scientist and as a university administrator, I hope that the opportunities I have had were based on merit rather than gender. The recent attention to women who are presidents of major universities is probably a sign that a significant number of women have had career-long experiences that prepare them for such a position. I care very much about seeing this trend continue and make it a point to mentor other women interested in the academic administrative pathway.

What is your background as a scientist and how does that contribute to your leadership?

I am a cell biologist with a research focus on human fetal skin development and genetic skin disease. Before I became involved in administration, I ran a large research lab at the University of Washington School of Medicine that involved research scientists, visiting faculty and post-docs from all over the world, graduate students and technicians. This experience provided an opportunity to plan a research agenda, devise strategies to solve problems, work with all kinds of people, obtain and manage institutional resources, develop networks of colleagues nationally and internationally, and connect with federal agencies and professional organizations for research. Science requires collaboration, teamwork and skill in working with many different kinds of people, and it provides a wonderful basis for learning directly about the process of problem solving.

Have you worked in controversial areas such as stem cell research or cloning?

Yes. At one point my own work involved studies of stem cells that exist within and repopulate the outer layer of the skin. These are not the stem cells you read about in the news, but they are cells into which you can insert genes to correct specific skin diseases. As an administrator, I have been involved in decisions about programs within the university that involve both stem cell research and cloning. A biotech company at Georgia owns four of the 60 stem cell lines approved by President Bush for federally funded research, and one of our faculty is a major figure in the cloning of cattle. This kind of work can be controversial and needs to be openly and rationally discussed with those who have legitimate ethical and social concerns. Federal guidelines are stringent and protective of society. Any work done at a university in both of these domains must be performed within the guidelines of the law, and those who are engaged must be cognizant of the concerns of society and willing to address the issues. Most universities have bioethics committees -- all have Institutional Review Committees -- to grapple with these issues.

What roles have you had in university-related economic development?

I have been vitally interested in this activity, beginning at least 15 years ago at the University of Washington, where I was involved in developing a proposal to create the Evergreen Technology Partnership with the city of Seattle, the state of Washington and other regional players to facilitate interactions involving university research capabilities and the private sector. Although the program as a whole was not funded, the effort did increase support for the university's technology transfer program. This allowed the program to expand appropriately and eventually establish a satellite intellectual property office in the UW medical school -- actions that contributed to the growth of the biotech sector in the Northwest. I also served as an appointee of the Governor on the Board of Directors of the Washington Technology Centers, a group of programs designed to fund research with economic implications for the state.

While at Florida, I was involved in the creation of the North Florida Technology Innovation Corporation, an organization sponsored by the state's economic and workforce arm -- Enterprise Florida -- to assist in the commercialization of technology. These corporations were modeled after a program in Kansas, KTEC. I also led the group that organized a statewide conference titled High Tech Florida Means Business sponsored by the AAAS, the State University System, the Governor's Office and private industry. The goal was to explore how universities could work with private industry and government to improve the economy in five specific growth areas for the state.

In Georgia, I have worked closely with the Georgia Research Alliance that makes strategic investments in its six research universities to recruit faculty (eminent scholars) who are likely to generate positive economic impacts, to purchase state-of-the-art equipment, and to start programs that are at the forefront of science and technology. It is a nationally recognized model for innovation in this field.

Why are the arts important to a university?

I think you have to start with the understanding that art plays a serious role in life. It contributes to our understanding of the world and has a meaning or importance of its own and is thus an excellent subject for study. A university benefits in a number of other ways from its art production and performance programs. The programs attract top students to the university with different gifts -- people devoted to exploring and developing their talent in addition to mastering academic subjects. Art programs also provide a route into the university for the outside community to experience performances or view exhibits that can demonstrate a commitment to quality and culture more readily than what goes on in classrooms or research facilities. Perhaps most importantly, the arts are a necessary component of the intellectual diversity which we value so highly in our best universities. The presence of the arts in a research environment provides perspective and balance -- a different mindset. At the same time, there are affinities between the arts and the sciences. The drive of a scientist to make new research discoveries is not unrelated to the artist's drive to create unique aesthetic objects, and it is not uncommon for scientists to become interested in the processes of artistic creation and to become fascinated with the beautiful. I could go into my own fascination, as a graduate student, with the very precise structure and, yes, the beauty of the connective tissue scaffolding of the bat wing. All of us can explore, refine and expand our aesthetic understanding of the beautiful.

How do you intend to involve Ohio State alumni in your plans?

One of the reporters at a recent press conference in Columbus referred to 375,000 Ohio State alumni all over the world and their legendary support for the University. It was the kind of statement that would make any university president feel great. The alumni are such an important resource to draw on, and in this case it is an enormous resource. It also implies a major responsibility to keep them informed about accomplishments and aspirations of the institution. OSU is known nationwide for having one of the nation's best alumni programs. I'm anxious to meet with alumni when they are back on campus and via Buckeye Clubs in their own regions. Everywhere I go -- even at the University of Georgia -- I meet OSU alums who are proud of and enthusiastic about their university.

Are you ready for what it takes to be an Ohio State sports fan?

SEC football introduced me to big-time college athletics, and I assumed it couldn't get much more frenetic -- but I'm told that it does. I am sure that everyone is aware that intercollegiate athletics involves serious oversight responsibilities for a university president, but if you see me on game day, I will be there as a Buckeye fan. My 93-year-old mother and I have been regular fans of the UGA women's gymnastics team, and Jim and I enjoy many other athletic events in addition to football.

Several universities have tried to recruit you as their president. Are you at Ohio State to stay?

When I decided to begin considering opportunities away from UGA, I had one objective: to find the right fit for the final goal of my academic career -- to serve as a university president. For reasons I have already discussed, Ohio State is the perfect fit. I have no interest in another institution. Ohio State is it.

Committee members praise selection

James F. Patterson, Chair of the Board of Trustees and Chair of the Presidential Search Committee

I believe that we found the best of the best -- and the perfect fit -- in Dr. Holbrook. Why do I say that? Why did we select her to lead us into the future, to help us realize our aspirations? First and foremost is Dr. Holbrook's total, unequivocal commitment to academic excellence and the Academic Plan. More than any person we spoke to, Dr. Holbrook conveyed a thorough understanding of our vision to become a great teaching and research university and what it will take to achieve it. One aspect of Dr. Holbrook's background was especially important, and that is experience with academic medical centers, medical research and biotechnology. Medicine is an important part of our University, and biotechnology is critical to the future of Ohio State and the state of Ohio.

Susan W. Fisher, Secretary of University Senate and Professor of Entomology

Karen Holbrook is uniquely suited to lead The Ohio State University. She has compiled an academic record that is the envy of every scholar and, as such, has the necessary gravitas to motivate and lead the faculty. Further, President Holbrook understands the importance of all fields of endeavor at a comprehensive university and will be able to create an environment in which scholars in disparate fields can work toward and achieve excellence. She possesses the communication skills needed to convey complex ideas to people of vastly different backgrounds and levels of preparation. There is no question that she will be able to turn with ease to address groups as variable as the legislature to the chamber of commerce to civic organizations to grade school children. She is beloved by students and is able simultaneously to hold high standards and expectations while serving effectively as an advocate. Lastly, President Holbrook is energized by the challenges that await her. She is, in short, the right person at the right time. Besides, it's about time we handed the reins to someone on the distaff side.

Willa N. Young, Associate Director of the Multicultural Center

Quite simply, Karen Holbrook became a top candidate for the Ohio State presidency because she was one of a small number of persons possessing the essential key attributes identified by our committee in the Presidential Profile. She made the leap to top contender status, in my mind, when we interviewed her. She possessed a vision for committing to OSU's Academic and Diversity plans that was unique to Ohio State, not a copy of how other institutions have achieved excellence. She made reference to a credo at University of Georgia,"UGA-Our Way," as she spoke of the importance of an institution making its own path, and I was convinced. Over and over again during the interview, Karen Holbrook demonstrated her understanding of what Ohio State needs to propel us toward our goals. She has a strong commitment to diversity and the ambitious academic goals we aspire to reach. Combine those with her exemplary interpersonal skills, her broad understanding of the challenges for higher education today, and her experience at three strong public institutions, and I knew she would make a capable leader as the next Ohio State president. I don't imagine that I will personally always agree with every decision and action Dr. Holbrook takes. I can, however, say with certainty that I will appreciate the values that inform her administration, and I will respect her leadership.

Karen A. Holbrook 13th President of The Ohio State University

Born in Des Moines, Iowa, Karen Holbrook earned B.S. and M.S. degrees in zoology at the University of Wisconsin in Madison in 1963 and 1966, respectively. After teaching biology at Ripon College for three years, she earned a Ph.D. in biological structure from the University of Washington School of Medicine in 1972.

Holbrook later became professor of biological structure and medicine at the University of Washington School of Medicine, gaining a national reputation for her expertise in dermatology. She also served as associate dean for scientific affairs.

In 1993, Holbrook moved to the University of Florida at Gainesville, where she was vice president for research and dean of the graduate school as well as professor of anatomy and cell biology and medicine (dermatology).

In 1998, Holbrook was named to her current position as senior vice president for academic affairs and provost at the University of Georgia -- serving also as professor of cell biology and adjunct professor of anatomy and cell biology and medicine at the Medical College of Georgia. At the University of Georgia, she helped create the Biomedical and Health Sciences Institute and played a key role in developing the university's Strategic Plan, which among other things includes a strong commitment to diversity and ambitious diversity goals. Working with the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation, she strongly supported the efforts of faculty and research leaders to successfully expand Georgia's federal research funding.

Throughout her career, she has held leadership roles and participated extensively in the activities of professional and honorary societies, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science where she is a fellow and member of the Board of Directors; the American Association of Universities; the National Association of State Universities and Land Grand Colleges; and the American Association of Medical Colleges. Her editorial and publication activities, as well as her service on faculty senates, economic development groups, search committees, and the like are extensive. She has been deeply involved in national and regional efforts to strengthen graduate education in America and has been active in economic development partnerships at the community and state levels.

She is married to Jim Holbrook, a retired oceanographer and past deputy director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's Pacific Marine Environmental Research Laboratory in Seattle. She and her husband have one son, James, who will soon graduate from the University of Georgia.