Davis to Deliver 2007 Kamm Lecture at OSU
Monday, February 5, 2007
He will speak on “Helping Higher Education Meet the Challenge” at 1:15 p.m. in the
Willard Lecture Hall on the OSU campus in Stillwater. His talk is free and is open
to the public.
Following the speech will be a response by a distinguished panel of state educators,
according to Dr. Pamela Fry, dean of the college. A reception will follow in the Willard
Living Room.
Davis serves as an ombudsman to the office of the governor and legislative leadership,
state education agencies, local education agencies, private schools, colleges and
universities in Federal support matters that affect education for the states of Arkansas,
Oklahoma, Louisiana, New Mexico and Texas.
He earned his B.A. and M.A. degrees from Truman State University in Missouri, and
his Ph.D. from Illinois State University.
He began his career in Rock Island, Ill., where he worked as a teacher, guidance counselor,
principal and central office administrator, including assistant superintendent and
interim superintendent of schools. He relocated to Plano, Texas, where he served for
two years as area superintendent for the Plano Independent School District before
being named superintendent of schools in Hattiesburg, Miss.
In Hattiesburg, Davis spearheaded an extensive reform program that led to some of
the greatest student performance gains in the school district’s history, and is credited
with implementing high accountability standards, capacity building systems and research
based-curricula prior to the No Child Left Behind legislation. He also served as an
adjunct professor of administrative leadership at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Davis has participated in numerous education forums across the U.S., Europe and Asia,
and has received awards for his outstanding work in the fields of education and community
service.
The Kamm Lecture is a policy-impacting lecture/symposium that fills a major void in
higher education policy-making. It brings private and public sector leaders together
to discuss critical, cutting-edge issues that will shape the future of Oklahoma in
general and the state's higher education in particular.
Dr. Kamm, OSU president from 1966-77, spent more than 45 years at OSU, and is an emeriti
faculty member of the College of Education. The Robert B. Kamm Fund of the OSU Foundation
also supports the Robert B. and Maxine Kamm Fellowship Program for doctoral students
in higher education administration.
Chairing this year’s lecture is Dr. Pilar Mendoza, assistant professor in the School
of Educational Studies.
OSU Research Week (February 19-23, 2007): 100 Years of Research and Beyond