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Ethiopian LMG delegation with Oklahoma State University President Kayse Shrum.
Ethiopian LMG delegation with Oklahoma State University President Kayse Shrum.

OSU welcomes the first cohort of the Ethiopian LMG Delegation

Thursday, October 27, 2022

Media Contact: Kelli Norton | Communication Specialist | 405-744-5496 | kelli.norton@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University recently welcomed a delegation of 28 Ethiopian higher education administrators to Stillwater as part of a U.S. Department of State grant to offer a professional development training seminar for higher education administrators in Ethiopia.

The program, entitled the Ethiopian Higher Education Leadership, Management and Governance Program (LMG), is funded by the U.S. Embassy in Ethiopia, and is a collaboration of Oklahoma State University, Ohio State University and Texas Tech University. The collaboration will last three years, during which two separate cohorts of senior leadership of Ethiopian universities will visit each of the three campuses, as well as participate in in-country workshops on university leadership and governance. 

The first cohort from the LMG program was comprised of presidents and vice presidents of 23 different Ethiopian universities, as well as senior leadership from the Ethiopian Ministry of Education. 

During their time at OSU, the delegation met with several OSU leaders, including OSU President Kayse Shrum; OSU Provost Jeanette Mendez; Chad Weiberg, vice president and athletic director; Dr. Paul Tikalsky, dean of the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology; Oklahoma A&M Regents CEO Jason Ramsey; and others.

The leadership at OSU provided unique insights into how a land-grant university began and continues to fulfill its mission.

Dr. Shrum conveyed the challenges she has faced as a new university president and how to inspire, lead and focus those around her to achieve the universities mission; Dr. Mendez touched on her experience as a woman in an educational leadership position and how to foster an environment of diversity; and Dr. Kenneth Sewell, vice president of research, discussed the relevant research conducted at OSU to carry on the legacy of a land grant university.

To better understand the role of faculty governance in the U.S., the delegation attended an OSU Faculty Council meeting and met the leadership of the Faculty Council to gain understanding on the role and responsibilities of the faculty in university governance. The delegation also toured OSU’s state-of-the-art facilities, such as the Endeavor Lab and the Food and Agricultural Products Center.

“We are delighted that we have been able to welcome these delegates to OSU’s campus,” said Dr. Randy Kluver, associate provost and dean of the School of Global Studies and Partnerships. “Most of them are very familiar with OSU’s history and legacy in Ethiopia, and now have direct experience on the campus which had such a profound impact on higher education in Ethiopia.”

Before leaving Oklahoma, the participants traveled to the Hamm Institute for American Energy in Oklahoma City to see practical, global solutions currently being developed. Jerome Loughridge, senior vice president of operations, took the delegation on a tour of the facilities and showed the groundbreaking work done at the institute. 

OSU’s relationship with Ethiopia began in 1951, when Oklahoma A&M College (now OSU) President Henry G. Bennett was tapped by President Harry S. Truman to head the Point IV Program, a technical assistance program now known as the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).  As a part of a contract signed with the Ethiopian government, dozens of OSU faculty and staff moved to Ethiopia to establish two of the nation’s top universities: Haramaya University and Jimma University.  

Planning for the program began several years ago, but implementation was delayed by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing conflict within Ethiopia. The second cohort of the delegation is expected to visit OSU in the fall of 2023.

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