10/03/2008

University of Nebraska President James B. Milliken has named the search committee for an executive director and chief science and technology officer of the Peter Kiewit Institute (PKI). The committee will undertake a national search, with the goal of having a new director named by early 2009 and in place no later than the Fall 2009 academic term. The executive search firm of Heidrick & Struggles will assist the committee.

In June, following a comprehensive review of PKI, the University of Nebraska Board of Regents and the Board of Policy Advisors of the Peter Kiewit Institute adopted a revised charter that established a new position of executive director and chief science and technology officer, not contemplated in the original charter, who would be responsible to the president of the university. The director will lead PKI in increasing the institute’s emphasis on research; identifying and strengthening areas of technical and educational focus; increasing the number of graduates, especially in information science and technology; expanding the financial base to attract star faculty; developing deeper strategic partnerships with organizations and corporations; and strengthening collaboration across disciplines and among colleges and campuses.

Members of the search committee are:

• Linda Pratt, executive vice president and provost, chair
• Dick Bell, chairman, CEO and president of HDR Inc., Omaha
• Bing Chen, professor and chair, Department of Computer and Electronics Engineering, UNL
• Deepak Khazanchi, professor and associate dean, College of Information Science and Technology, UNO
• Kim Nelson, student majoring in computer science and management information systems, UNO
• Prem Paul, vice chancellor for research and economic development, UNL
• Connie Ryan, president, Streck, Inc., Omaha
• Joseph Sisson, professor, Department of Internal Medicine, UNMC
• Ilze Zigurs, professor and chair, Department of Information Systems and Quantitative Analysis, UNO

Located on the campus of the University of Nebraska at Omaha, PKI incorporates the information, science and technology programs of UNO and selected engineering programs of UNL. The institute was established more than a decade ago and has built a reputation for attracting top students and building close partnerships with the business community. Some 1,800 undergraduate and graduate students are enrolled in the programs of the Peter Kiewit Institute, which include bioinformatics, computer science, information systems and quantitative analysis, information assurance, architectural engineering and construction, civil engineering, and computer and electronics engineering.