Barbara Lyman named ACE Fellow

SAN MARCOS, TEXAS — Barbara Lyman, acting chair of the Department of Art and Design at Southwest Texas State University, has been named an American Council on Education (ACE) Fellow for academic year 2000-2001.

The announcement was made recently by ACE president Stanley O. Ikenberry. The ACE Fellows Program, established in 1965, is designed to identify and prepare promising faculty and senior administrators for responsible positions in college and university administration. Thirty-three fellows, nominated by the presidents or chancellors of their institution, were selected this year in a national competition.

Lyman received her bachelor’s degree in English from Anna Maria College, her master’s degree in English & American literature from Brandeis University, a certificate of advanced study in reading education from Harvard, and a Ph.D. in education from Louisiana State University. Her 23 years of full-time university teaching include employment at Oakland University, the University of Louisiana-Lafayette and the University of Delaware. She has taught at SWT for eight years.

During this time, Lyman has also served as coordinator and advisor for the graduate program in developmental and adult education, associate director of human resources and was appointed acting chair of the Department of Art and Design in 1998. Each ACE fellow will focus on an issue of concern to the nominating institution while spending the next academic year working with a college or university president and other senior officers at a host institution. Lyman is currently in the process of deciding which institution will serve as her host institution. Lyman will be included in the highest level of decision making while participating in administrative activities and contributing to a learning group exploring the project to benefit SWT. She will attend several three week-long seminars on higher education issues organized by ACE, read extensively in the field, and engage in other activities to enhance her knowledge about the challenges and opportunities confronting higher education today and in the next century.

Marlene Ross, director of the Fellows Program, noted that most previous fellows have advanced into major positions in academic administration. Of the 1,248 participants in the first 34 years of the program, more than 250 have become chief executive officers and nearly 1,000 have become provosts, vice presidents or deans.

The American Council on Education is the umbrella association for the nation’s colleges and universities. ACE membership includes 1,600 accredited, degree-granting institutions and more than 200 higher education associations and organizations.

Through voluntary and cooperative action, ACE coordinates national public policy positions on higher education issues and provides comprehensive leadership for improving educational standards, policies and procedures.