Biography
Richard
H. Wells took office as the tenth Chancellor of the University of Wisconsin
Oshkosh on October 1, 2000. Prior to his appointment, Chancellor Wells served
as Provost and Vice President of Academic Affairs at Indiana State University,
and as Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at West Chester University.
Chancellor Wells received his B.A. degree from William Penn College, his M.A. from the University of Arkansas, and his Ph.D. in Sociology from Texas A & M University. His eighteen years of college teaching experience include appointments at the University of South Alabama, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and at Coker College in Hartsville, South Carolina.
He is the author of American Sociology: Theoretical and Methodological Structure (1981) and of many scholarly articles, which have appeared in journals such as Sociological Inquiry, Rural Sociology, Criminology, and Research in Higher Education. His scholarship investigates issues ranging from the sociology of nutritional inequality to the sociology of sports. He has presented papers at many meetings of the leading national sociology organizations such as the Rural Sociological Society, Society for the Study of Social Problems and the American Sociological Association. He has served as national program chair for the Association for Humanist Sociology and as grant reviewer for the National Science Foundation.
He recently finished a four-year term on the NCAA Division III Presidents’ Council and serves as past chair of the American Association of State Colleges and Universities’ Committee on the Undergraduate Experience. He is currently serving as chair of the national Task Force on Student Engagement for the Volunteer System of Accountability Project. He also serves as a voting member of the boards of Affinity Health, Oshkosh Chamber of Commerce, NEW ERA, New North, Oshkosh Convention and Visitor's Bureau, Oshkosh Industrial Development Corporation (CHAMCO), United Way and as a non-voting member of U.S. Bank's local community advisory board.
In the spring of 2001, Chancellor Wells received the John R. Emens National Award for Support of a Free Student Press from Ball State University for his efforts to preserve the independence and autonomy of the Advance-Titan, the student newspaper at UW Oshkosh.
Chancellor Wells has fulfilled major leadership roles establishing innovative collaborative organizations and programs among different types of post-secondary institutions. For example, while at Indiana State University, he lead the establishment of the DegreeLink program that allows ISU, along with twenty-two state technical colleges and four community colleges to offer eleven baccalaureate degree completion programs statewide via distance education technologies. At the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, he served from 2001-2005 as the founding chairperson of NEW ERA (Northeastern Wisconsin Educational Resource Alliance), a consortium of executive leaders of northeast Wisconsin’s 13 public universities serving 1.2 million Wisconsin residents. Founded in 2001, NEW ERA is composed of four technical colleges, five UW two-year colleges, two UW comprehensive universities, the College of Menominee Nation and UW Extension. These institutions are enjoying statewide and national acclaim for large increases in degree program articulations, collaborative business entrepreneurship centers, graduation projects, and alternative licensure/certification programs for much-needed nurses and teachers.
NEW ERA is also a founding member of NEW NORTH, a consortium of collaborative organizations of northeastern Wisconsin’s Chambers of Commerce, Workforce Development Boards, economic development professionals and CEOs of major corporations. The vision for NEW NORTH is to be nationally and globally competitive for advancing job growth while maintaining a superior quality of life for northeastern Wisconsin’s citizens. Due to his role as founding chair of NEW ERA, Chancellor Wells serves as a founding member of the NEW NORTH Board of directors. They have completed a major strategic action-based regional economic study, recruited an executive director, launched a regional branding marketing campaign, obtained major donations from business and other organizations, and received a large grant from the Governor.
During his tenure at UW Oshkosh, Chancellor Wells has engaged the academic community in developing a shared vision for the future of the University. This process has created the Governing Ideas, a statement of the University's mission, vision, values, and strategic directions. The implementation of this process-the development of key operational plans and action initiatives-is ongoing. By focusing their resources on identified priorities, the members of the UW Oshkosh community have accomplished many remarkable feats during the years 2000-2007. A few examples are listed below.
Strategic Accomplishments 2000-2007
We have larger enrollments and FTE, and we have increased the number of students of color and adult students, degrees conferred and the retention rates for our first-year students:
- Headcount enrollment increased by 8.6 percent (1009) to 12,700 students,
- FTE increased by 9.4 percent (869),
- Enrollment of students of color increased by 365, up 95.8 percent,
- Enrollment of adult students age 25+ increased by 21.0 percent (291),
- Degrees conferred increased from 1,712 to 2,053, up 19.9 percent, and
- Retention rates for first-year students improved from 70.8 to 73.2 percent.
We have secured more grants and more private dollars than ever before:
- Grants increased from $8.8 to $9 million, up 2.3 percent,
- Foundation gifts and pledges increased from $1.7 to $4.4 million,
- Foundation total assets tripled from $7 to $22 million, and
- Acquired funding for 91 Academic Excellence and National Merit Scholarships up from 44, an increase of 106.8 percent.
We have raised the level of academic preparedness of our first-year students:
- 21.2 percent more are from the top 25 percent of their high school class, and
- 11 are new Academic Excellence Scholars and 3 are new National Merit scholars.
We have expanded support programs for student, faculty and staff development:
- New Student Compact provides $1 million annually through differential tuition to enhance and integrate student academic support services,
- New Scholarship of Teaching and Learning program, and
- New leadership development programs for faculty, academic staff and classified staff have been implemented.
We have added new academic majors, graduate certificate programs and baccalaureate degree completion programs:
- Undergraduate majors in theatre arts and environmental studies,
- Accelerated Math and Science Teacher Education Program in collaboration with five UW Colleges,
- 11 new graduate certificate programs,
- Global MBA program,
- Collaborative master’s degree in social work with UW-Green Bay,
- Accelerated bachelor’s degree for non-nursing graduates,
- MBA Foundations Online Program, and
- Wisconsin’s first Bachelor of Applied Studies degree.
We have enhanced our facilities by completing approximately $100 million worth of building projects characterized by:
- $1.8 million of classroom and lab upgrades,
- $17-million Halsey Science Center renovation,
- $19.9-million Reeve Memorial Union renovation and addition,
- $13-million renovation of Taylor Hall,
- $5.5-million of planned transformation of the Oshkosh Sports Complex,
- Purchase and renovation of the 30,000-square-foot Newman Center for Academic Support and Diversity and new Women’s Center, and of the Credit Union building for Grants and Faculty Development by UWO Foundation,
- Campus beautification project—landscaping, lighting and signage,
- $21 million Student Health and Wellness Center, and
- $7.7-million, 400-stall parking ramp.
We have another $100 million worth of capital projects on the near horizon characterized by:
- New $48 million new academic building,
- New $8.5 million Elmwood Student Support Development and Referral Center,
- New $34 million Residence Hall, and
- New $6.3 Facilities Maintenance Center.
We have won national recognition for our commitment to “green” principles by decreasing negative environmental impacts by conserving water and energy, reducing pollution and recycling:
- Reduced water consumption by 24.5 million gallons/year, a savings of $130,986,
- Reduced energy consumption by 563,017 kilowatt-hours, a savings of $27,600/year,
- Reduced emissions of coal/natural gas boilers by constructing a $2.8 million heat plant stack,
- Reused light poles, resulting in more energy efficiency and less light pollution, a $300,000 savings,
- Ranked 23rd among all U.S. colleges and universities using renewable energy,
- Received the 2003 EPA Leadership Award–the 11th U.S. university to receive the EPA’s highest leadership award, and
- Received the 2004 National Wildlife Federation Award, the 2005 Energy Star Award, and the 2006 Wisconsin Clean Air Award.
We have been recognized as a national model for developing and highlighting exemplary campus-wide liberal education programs:
- Featured online by the American Council on Education’s “Solutions for Our Future”
- Lauded by the Association of American Colleges and Universities for linking their initiative entitled Liberal Education and America’s Promise (LEAP) to the ACE’s “Solutions for Our Future” and
- Devoted three issues (Spring 2006, Fall 206, and Spring 2007) of the UW Oshkosh Magazine to a three-part series on the value and importance of a liberal education.
We are especially proud of the accomplishments of our faculty and students:
- UW Oshkosh has won more Regents’ Teaching Excellence Awards than any other UW institution. Four individual faculty members and three departments have received this very prestigious award.
- UW Oshkosh has had the most successful Model United Nations Program in the nation for two decades running.
- Since 1999, the College of Nursing graduate students’ pass rate on the American Nurses Credentialing Center–Family Nurse Practitioner Exam has been 100 percent.
- Senior business majors at UW Oshkosh taking the ETS business knowledge assessment test ranked in the top 16 percent nationwide while MBA graduates ranked in the top 5 percent of the national MBA student assessment exam.
- UW Oshkosh students who took the CPA exam placed the university in the top 10 of schools nationally.
- The Advance-Titan has won the top national award for student newspapers five times.
- Since 1990, 64 UW Oshkosh graduates have gone on to be awarded the Herb Kohl Teacher of the Year Award.
- The best graduate programs in the nation covet the College of Letters and Science graduates.
- UW Oshkosh has won 40 national championships, including 25 NCAA Division III competitions.
- The 2005-2006 graduating class with 2,035 graduates, was the second largest graduating class in the history of UW Oshkosh and the 2006-2007 class was the largest with 2053 graduates.
For more examples of our accomplishments, please visit the 2006-2007 UW Oshkosh Strategic Plan Update & Annual Report.
Contact us at: 920 424-0200