Mobilizing for Research Opportunities in the Next Century


The Barn, Valley Falls, KS 

July 15-17, 1998

This was the second annual retreat in the series: The Research Mission of Public Universities. Thirty-two administrators and senior faculty scientists attended the retreat. They represented three Midwest institutions: the University of Kansas, the University of Missouri at Columbia, and the University of Nebraska at Lincoln. They talked about the research mission of higher education and how to compete for new funding. They discussed ways to enhance research productivity and identified regional initiatives that are competitive nationally.

Our keynote speaker was Dr. Michael Crow who was Vice Provost for Research at Columbia University. He encouraged university administrators to identify niche areas for research focus because the entire institution benefits from selective areas of investigation that are developed at the very highest levels of excellence.

We were also pleased to be joined by U.S. Senator Pat Roberts.


Retreat Participants 

Columbia University 

  • Michael M. Crow, Vice Provost for Research and Professor of Science & Technology Policy 

University of Missouri - Columbia 

  • Jerry Atwood, Chemistry Department 
  • Jack Burns, Vice Provost for Research 

University of Kansas 

  • Robert Barnhill, Vice Chancellor for Research & Public Service and President, Center for Research, Inc. 
  • Maria Carlson, Director, Russian & East European Studies 
  • John Colombo, Human Development and Family Life 
  • Stephen C. Fowler, Human Development and Family Life and Institute for Life Span Studies 
  • Victor S. Frost, Acting Director Information & Telecommunication Technology Center 
  • Sally Frost-Mason, Dean, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences  
  • Gunda Georg, Director, Drug Discovery Program Department of Medicinal Chemistry 
  • Robert Hemenway, Chancellor  
  • Ted Kuwana, Director, Kansas EPSCoR Program  
  • Virginia and Fred Merrill 
  • Mabel L. Rice, Director, Child Language Doctoral Program and The Merrill Advanced Studies Center 
  • Richard Schiefelbusch, Director Emeritus, Schiefelbusch Institute for Life Span Studies 
  • Richard L. Schowen, Departments of Chemistry, Molecular Biosciences and Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Higuchi Biosciences Center 
  • Steve Schroeder, Director, Institute for Life Span Studies 
  • David E. Shulenburger, Provost 
  • Marilyn Stokstad, Kress Foundation Department of Art History 
  • Kim Wilcox, Chair, Department of Speech-Language-Hearing 

University of Kansas Medical Center 

  • A. L. Chapman, Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs  
  • Deborah Powell, Executive Dean and Vice Chancellor for Clinical Affairs 
  • Paul Terranova, Director, Center for Reproductive Science 

University of Missouri – Columbia 

  • Richard Schwartz, Dean of Arts and Sciences 

University of Nebraska – Lincoln 

  • Brian Foster Dean, College of Arts and Sciences 
  • Rick Edwards, Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs  
  • Timothy Gay, Behlen Laboratory of Physics 
  • Donald Helmuth, President, Nebraska Technology Development Corp. 
  • James Moeser, Chancellor 
  • Suzanne Ortega, Special Assistant to Senior Vice Chancellor and Associate Dean of Graduate Studies 

Other Participants 

  • Robert Woody, University of Kansas Counsel in Washington, D.C., Shook, Hardy & Bacon