Media Release | The Ohio State University at Lima

The Ohio State University President Karen A Holbrook will visit The Ohio State University at Lima on Wednesday, November 6, 2002. This is her first official visit to the campus since taking office in early October. While in Lima, Dr. Holbrook will visit with students, faculty, and staff, before attending a reception for community leaders in the late afternoon.

A media conference with time for individual interviews is planned for 3:35 p.m. in the Dean’s Office, 208 Public Service. Any members of the media who wish to travel with the President throughout the day are welcome.

The full agenda and a biography follows:

KAREN A. HOLBROOK
PRESIDENT, THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY

Karen A. Holbrook became the 13th president of The Ohio State University on October 1, 2002. She is committed to helping Ohio State realize its vision of becoming a truly great teaching and research university.

To achieve that goal, Dr. Holbrook will build upon Ohio State's Academic Plan and increase the strength and quality of its connections with on-campus constituencies and with the community, state, nation, and world. Thus, Ohio State's size will invariably be equated with excellence, leadership among institutions of higher education, and the University's value to the future of Ohio.

Dr. Holbrook comes to Columbus from the University of Georgia, where since 1998 she served as senior vice president for academic affairs and provost ‚ as well as professor of cell biology and adjunct professor of anatomy and cell biology and medicine at the Medical College of Georgia. At Georgia, she helped create the Biomedical and Health Sciences Institute, the New Media Institute, the Faculty of Engineering and two new colleges, 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. She strongly supported the efforts of faculty and research leaders to successfully expand Georgia's federal research funding.

Born in Des Moines, Iowa, she 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.

Building upon that excellent educational background, Dr. Holbrook became an instructor and later assistant professor, associate professor, associate chairman, and professor of biological structure and medicine (dermatology) at the University of Washington School of Medicine, gaining a national reputation for her expertise in developmental skin biology and genetic skin diseases. Showing the leadership skills that characterize her career, she also served as associate dean for scientific affairs and worked closely with the Association of American Medical Colleges on issues of research and graduate education.

In 1993, Dr. 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). While there, she organized and chaired a meeting co-sponsored by the Governor's Office, the University System, private enterprise, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) called "The Future of Science and Technology in Florida: High Tech Florida Means Business."

Throughout her career, she has held leadership roles and participated extensively in the activities of professional and honorary societies, including the AAAS, 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-Grant Colleges; and the Association of American Medical Colleges. Her editorial and publication activities are extensive, and her service on faculty senates, economic development groups, search committees and the like are impressive. 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.

As Ohio State's chief executive officer, Dr. Holbrook leads one of the nation's largest and most distinguished universities dedicated to teaching, research, and service. As the state's flagship institution, Ohio State enrolls 55,000 students, employs more than 21,000 faculty and staff, has 328,000 known living alumni around the world, and operates on an annual budget of $2.55 billion. Ohio State has 19 colleges, a graduate school, four regional campuses, and is home to a statewide agricultural research and cooperative extension system.