April 13, 2005

Former MIT President Charles Vest will Deliver the 2005 Clark Kerr Lecture at UC Santa Barbara

Eileen Conrad

Charles M. Vest, former president of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), will present one of the prestigious Clark Kerr Lectures at UC Santa Barbara on Thursday, April 21, at 4 p.m. in Corwin Pavilion.

The free public lecture will focus on "Openness and Globalization in Higher Education---The Age of the Internet, Terrorism and Opportunity." A reception will follow.

"We are absolutely delighted and honored to welcome Charles Vest, an innovator and visionary in higher education, to UC Santa Barbara for this distinguished lecture," said UCSB Chancellor Henry T. Yang.

The Clark Kerr Lecture series was established in 2001 through UC Berkeley's Center for Studies in Higher Education in honor of the late Clark Kerr.

Kerr was one of the 20th century's most influential leaders in higher education.

He was a former UC Berkeley chancellor, president of the UC system, and chief architect of California's master plan for higher education. He helped establish the center and maintained close ties throughout his career.

Kerr died in 2003

Vest is a national leader in higher education.

As president of MIT from 1990-2004, Vest worked to improve undergraduate education, strengthen the international dimensions of education and research programs, boost relations with industry, and enhance racial and cultural diversity.

He also devoted considerable energy to bringing issues concerning education and research to broader public attention and to strengthening national policy on science, engineering and education.

He was provost of the University of Michigan before joining MIT.

Vest will deliver three lectures in all.

The first will be held on April 19 at UC Berkeley, followed by the one at UCSB.

A third lecture is scheduled for next fall at Berkeley.

The lectures will focus on the dynamics of federal science and technology policymaking, and the role of three distinct constituents: the public, government, and industry.

The University of California's Office of the President provided initial funding for the lectures, which are delivered every two years. The first Kerr Lecturer was Harold Shapiro, president emeritus of Princeton University and a former president of the University of Michigan.

For more information about the Clark Kerr Lectures on the Role of Higher Education in Society, visit http://cshe.berkeley.edu/events/kerrlectures/2005lectures.htm.

About UC Santa Barbara

The University of California, Santa Barbara is a leading research institution that also provides a comprehensive liberal arts learning experience. Our academic community of faculty, students, and staff is characterized by a culture of interdisciplinary collaboration that is responsive to the needs of our multicultural and global society. All of this takes place within a living and learning environment like no other, as we draw inspiration from the beauty and resources of our extraordinary location at the edge of the Pacific Ocean.