University of Illinois scholar will take reins of WMU international efforts

KALAMAZOO—Dr. Wolfgang F. Schlör, a longtime international education professional now serving at the University of Illinois, has been named Western Michigan University's new associate provost for the Haenicke Institute for Global Education, effective Oct. 1.

Schlör is currently the interim associate provost for international affairs and interim director of international programs and studies at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. His appointment was made pending approval by the WMU Board of Trustees. He replaces Dr. Bassam Harik, who has served in the position on an interim basis since mid-2012.

"We're delighted to have found someone with the depth and breadth of experience in international higher education that Dr. Schlör brings to this position," said WMU Provost Timothy J. Greene in announcing the appointment. "Our commitment to and strong track record in global engagement makes this a critical position, and I'm confident that Dr. Schlör will be an enormous asset as we move forward."

Wolfgang F. Schlör

Schlör has been at Illinois since 2007, serving first as associate director of the Office of International Programs and Studies and then moving to the interim associate provost and director role in 2009. In his current role, he oversees a department with 16 component units and international studies centers and some 80 employees. Among his other accomplishments in that role, he:

• established a new Office of Illinois Strategic International Partnerships to solidify campus efforts to create intentional institutional partnerships around the globe,
• initiated a robust program of reaching out to international alumni and raising funds for international education,
• enhanced engagement with the international diplomatic community stationed in Chicago, and
• created a Learning Abroad Policy Committee to address structural obstacles to broader study abroad participation.

Prior to his position at Illinois, Schlör held international and academic affairs roles at the University of Pittsburgh, beginning in 1994. During his time there, he served as associate director and then interim director of the University Center for International Studies.

Schlör spent a year at Duke University as an exchange student and earned master's and doctoral degrees in political science from the Free University of Berlin. He was a visiting scholar in Russia at the Siberian International Center for Regional Studies and in the United States at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Center for International Studies. He also was a postdoctoral research fellow at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government as well as a research associate at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

"I am excited to join an institution with such a clear commitment to campus internationalization as Western Michigan University," said Schlör. "During my visits, I had the pleasure to meet many faculty and professionals with a deep dedication to global engagement. I look forward to becoming a part of the team."