APLU Announces Appointment of Kathie L. Olsen as Vice President of International Programs

He also took the opportunity to thank Kerry Bolognese for his service and leadership in international programs.

 

In addition, he acknowledged the contributions of the search committee, including chairperson Brady Deaton, chancellor of the University of Missouri and chair of the Commission on International Programs; Ann Weaver Hart, president of Temple University and immediate past chair of the Commission on International Programs; Deanna Behring, director of international programs, College of Agricultural Sciences, The Pennsylvania State University; William DeLauder, president emeritus of Delaware State University; Julie Howard, executive director of the Partnership to Cut Hunger & Poverty in Africa; John Hudzik, vice president for global engagement and strategic projects at Michigan State University; Earl Kellogg, professor emeritus at University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign; and Alice Pell, vice provost of international programs at Cornell University.

 

 

“Kathie Olsen has had a long and distinguished career in the nation’s premier science agencies and has worked  at the intersection of science and international education,” said A۰P۰L۰U  President Peter McPherson.  “A۰P۰L۰U and our member institutions need to be working at this critical intersection in the years ahead.  I am excited to have her leading our international program efforts in this direction.”

 

The A۰P۰L۰U Vice President for International Programs is responsible for a dynamic and extensive set of activities focused on strengthening and developing new international programs as an integral part of the modern university and a 21^st century global education.

 

“Kathie Olsen is one of those very successful science leaders who is able to work very effectively with scientists, government program officers, and policy makers,” said Alan I. Leshner, chief executive officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and executive publisher, Science.“Her broad international experience will surely increase the international presence and impact of A۰P۰L۰U.”

 

Olsen was confirmed by the U.S. Senate as the Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer of NSF in August 2005. For three and half years, she was responsible for the day-to-day management and oversight of program creation and administration; national and international collaborations; merit review processes; strategic and long-term planning and performance; budget development, implementation and reporting; personnel; and operations. 

 

“No one in my knowledge of NSF has done more for the agency, has done it so brilliantly, or with as much dedication and hard work,” said NSF Director Arden L. Bement, Jr. “Kathie Olsen has steadfastly guarded the image and reputation of the Foundation and has championed the rights and interests of all, especially women and minorities.”

 

The A۰P۰L۰U Commission on International Programs seeks to incorporate a global dimension into the learning, discovery, and engagement activities of member institutions.

 

“The international dimensions of A۰P۰L۰U and member universities will be well served by the vast experience of Kathie Olsen,” said University of Missouri Chancellor Brady Deaton, who also serves as chair of the A۰P۰L۰U Commission on International Programs. “She is an internationally experienced leader with deep understanding of universities and their multiple-faceted roles. She brings distinction and well-earned respect to this new position!”

 

A۰P۰L۰U provides critical leadership to the Africa-U.S. Higher Education Initiative, an effort to establish 30 to 40 robust capacity-building partnerships between U.S. and African universities. The Association also is driving to expand study abroad through advocacy for the Senator Paul Simon Study Abroad Foundation Act which would increase the number of students studying abroad to one million per year over a 10-year span.

 

“Throughout my career in the federal government, my greatest priorities have been enhancing our nation's capabilities in research and learning, and promoting the broad engagement of all our citizens in the global opportunities and challenges of today and tomorrow,” Olsen said. “For this next step in my career, A۰P۰L۰U offers an unparalleled opportunity to pursue these same priorities, working with talented, like-minded individuals representing the unsurpassed capabilities and full diversity of our national public research universities, land-grant institutions, and state university systems. I am particularly excited about the opportunity to engage in strengthening the international focus of these institutions as they simultaneously seek to improve America's leadership and competitiveness through the development of a globally prepared workforce and engagement in global problem solving that will benefit us all.”

 

In January 2009, she was named senior advisor in the NSF's Office of Information and Resource Management, advising the Foundation's Chief Human Capital Officer as well as NSF senior management on opportunities for NSF-wide management improvement in areas such as strengthening merit review and interdisciplinary research processes, workforce planning, Program Officer training and development, and succession planning.

 

Olsen joined NSF from OSTP where, since 2002, she had been Associate Director and then Deputy Director for Science. Her responsibilities included overseeing national and international science and education policy development and federal agency program coordination for the physical sciences, life sciences, environmental science, behavioral and social sciences and education.

 

Prior to OSTP, Olsen served as Chief Scientist for NASA and the Acting Associate Administrator for Biological and Physical Research. As Chief Scientist, she served as the Administrator's senior scientific advisor, principal advisor on budget content of the scientific programs and principal interface with the national and international scientific community. As Acting Associate Administrator during the formulation of the new Enterprise for Biological and Physical Research, she oversaw budget development and implementation, recruitment and development of professional and support staff and strategic planning.

 

Prior to joining NASA, Olsen had been Senior Staff Associate for the Science and Technology Centers in the Office of Integrative Activities at NSF. From February 1996 until November 1997, she was a Legislative Fellow and detailee from NSF to the Office of Senator Conrad Burns of Montana. Between 1984 and 1996, she served NSF in a variety of administrative and scientific leadership positions.

 

At various times in her early professional career, Olsen also served as a Research Scientist at the State University of New York-Stony Brook's Long Island Research Institute and Assistant Professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science at the Medical School, as well as Adjunct Associate Professor in the Department of Microbiology at the George Washington University.

 

Olsen earned a bachelor of science in Biology and Psychology with honors from Chatham College and a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from the University of California, Irvine. She was a Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Neuroscience at Children's Hospital of Harvard Medical School. Her research on neural and genetic mechanisms underlying development and expression of behavior was supported by the National Institutes of Health.

 

Olsen holds numerous awards from foreign entities, government agencies, institutions and scientific societies. These include the Norwegian Royal Order of Merit; NASA's Outstanding Leadership Medal; the NSF Director's Award of Excellence; awards for outstanding contributions from the International Behavioral Neuroscience Society and the Society for Behavioral Neuroendocrinology; the Barry M. Goldwater Educator Award from the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, National Capital Section; the University of California, Irvine Lauds and Laurels Distinguished Alumna Award; and the Barnard College Medal of Distinction.

 

She is an elected Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the Association for Women in Science, and an elected member of the Explorers Club. She has been awarded honorary doctoral degrees from Chatham College, Clarkson University, and University of South Carolina.