UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State has named Lance C. Kennedy-Phillips as vice provost for planning and assessment, effective Oct. 19.
Kennedy-Phillips is currently associate vice provost for institutional research at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
“Lance brings with him an extensive resume that includes work at some of the largest and most well respected institutions of higher education in the country,” said Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost. “Having someone of his caliber and experience heading the new Office of Planning and Assessment will help Penn State maintain its position as one of the premier universities in the 21st century.”
As vice provost, Kennedy-Phillips will be responsible for leading the former Office of Planning and Institutional Assessment (OPIA) as well as the new Office for Learning Assessment, established to provide improved university wide support for this key aspect of our educational mission. OPIA’s services are designed to promote strategic planning, continuous improvement and institutional assessment through effective data analysis, consulting and facilitation services. The educational component of the Office of Planning and Institutional Assessment provides education and training for planning, improvement and assessment, and works collaboratively with other development services and units at the University as needed. The Office for Learning Assessment will be focused on ensuring that the university has in place comprehensive and proper support mechanisms for program assessment for all our degree programs, including undergraduate majors, certificates, minors, and graduate programs, in so doing fulfilling expectations for future accreditation reviews.
“I’m honored and excited to join the Penn State community,” Kennedy-Phillips said. “Penn State has a strong reputation of using strategic planning and institutional analytics to inform decision making at all levels of the institution. I welcome the opportunity to build on this foundation by working with faculty, staff and students to develop an integrated process for planning, assessment and analytics at Penn State.”
As the associate vice provost for institutional research at the University of Illinois, Kennedy-Phillips collaborated with college deans and administrative units to maximize the use of data in strategic planning, program review, outcomes assessment and accreditation. He conducted institutional studies of factors that influence and enhance student success.
Kennedy-Phillips other experiences includes serving as executive director of the Center for the Study of Student Life at Ohio State, associate director of institutional planning and research at the University of Florida and a research associate in institutional research and planning at DePaul University.
He earned his bachelor of arts in sociology from Eastern Illinois University and his master of education and doctorate in higher education administration from the University of Nebraska.