Third finalist in provost search to speak on campus, meet with stakeholders
Lee Kats, the third candidate in the search for the next provost and executive vice president, will speak at an open forum from 2-3 p.m. Tuesday.
The event will take place in the Vandal Ballroom in The Bruce Pitman Center, formerly known as the Student Union Building. Kats will give a presentation followed by a Q&A session. Throughout the day, Kats will also meet with the search committee along with a variety of University of Idaho stakeholders on campus.
Kats is the current vice provost for research and strategic initiatives at Pepperdine University in California and has held the position since 2011. As vice provost, Kats oversees the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs as well as the Information Technology department, which has a budget of $17 million. Kats is also a member of the President’s Steering Committee that offers advice to Pepperdine’s president.
Before his current position, Kats served as associate provost of research from 2004-2011. He also served as the assistant/associate dean of research for 13 years, where he headed a committee that issued recommendations on research policy and internal funding.
Kats began at Pepperdine in 1990 as an assistant professor after taking similar positions at Greenville College and Au Sable Institute of Environmental Studies.
Pepperdine is a private Christian university located off the Pacific Coast Highway in Malibu, California.
As a professor, Kats received multiple grants from the National Science Foundation along with grants from the National Parks Service, U.S. Geological Survey and Western National Parks Association.
Currently, Kats is also a member of the graduate faculty in the Zoology Department at Oregon State University.
Kats has also been a visiting scientist at the UCLA School of Medicine and Oregon State University.
There are five candidates vying for the position. If selected, Kats would replace Interim Provost and Executive Vice President Katherine Aiken, who took the position in 2012.
Ryan Tarinelli can be reached at [email protected]