UF professor named American Council on Education Fellow

March 1, 2006

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — University of Florida professor E. Jane Luzar has been named an American Council on Education Fellow for the 2006-07 academic year.

Luzar, who holds a bachelor’s degree in anthropology and master’s and doctoral degrees in agricultural economics, served as associate dean for the UF College of Agricultural and Life Sciences from 1999 to 2005. She is a professor in the Department of Food and Resource Economics at UF and currently serves as a provost fellow working on undergraduate issues and faculty affairs.

Before coming to UF, Luzar was employed as a professor at Louisiana State University for 12 years, where she was recognized as an outstanding teacher by LSU’s College of Agriculture, Amoco and the American Agricultural Economics Association. Prior to her departure from LSU, she was recognized for teaching and research accomplishments as a distinguished faculty member.

As an ACE Fellow, Luzar will focus on an issue of concern to the UF while spending the next academic year working with a college or university president and other senior officers at a host institution. The ACE Fellows Program combines seminars, interactive learning opportunities, campus visits and placement at another higher education institution to condense years of on-the-job experience and skills development into a single semester or year.

“I am most excited about Dr. Luzar’s opportunity to observe best academic practices at other campuses and then bring that learning back to UF,” UF Provost Janie Fouke said. “It should be a rich opportunity both for her personally and for our institution as well.”

Fellows attend three week-long seminars on higher education issues organized by ACE, read extensively in the field and engage in other activities to enhance their knowledge about the challenges and opportunities confronting higher education today and throughout this century.

Founded in 1918, ACE is the major coordinating body for all the nation’s higher education institutions, representing more than 1,600 college and university presidents, and more than 200 related associations, nationwide. It seeks to provide leadership and a unifying voice on key higher education issues and influence public policy through advocacy, research, and program initiatives.

The ACE Fellows Program, established in 1965, is designed to strengthen institutions and leadership in American higher education by identifying and preparing promising senior faculty and administrators for responsible positions in college and university administration. Thirty-eight fellows, nominated by the presidents or chancellors of their institutions, were selected this year in a national competition.

Marlene Ross, director of the ACE Fellows Program, noted that most previous fellows have advanced into major positions in academic administration. Of the more than 1,498 participants in the first 41 years of the program, more than 300 have become chief executive officers and more than 1,100 have become provosts, vice presidents or deans.

“We’re extremely pleased with the incoming class,” Ross said. “The individuals selected have demonstrated strong leadership. The Fellows Program will sharpen and enhance their leadership skills and their network, and prepare them to address issues of concern to the higher education community.”