UHV associate provost accepts interim role
Joann Olson, University of Houston-Victoria associate provost for research and dean of graduate studies, has recently agreed to move into the role of interim provost for the university as the current provost prepares to depart the university for a new role in the summer.
Chance Glenn, UHV’s current provost and vice president for academic affairs, has accepted a new position as president of Buffalo State University in New York. Glenn plans to finish the academic year at UHV and will leave for Buffalo in July. As the interim provost, Olson will begin working with Glenn to ensure that the leadership transition will be seamless and have a minimal impact on the university’s operations in the coming months.
“I appreciate Dr. Chance Glenn being willing to give advice and counsel to Dr. Olson,” UHV President Bob Glenn said. “Dr. Olson will benefit greatly from his guidance. The two working together over the next two months will ensure a successful transition that will help us going forward.”
Olson has been part of the UHV faculty for 12 years. She began as a member of the education faculty and taught graduate courses in adult and higher education. Although her original plan was to spend a few years at UHV gaining experience and then move to a university where she could work with doctoral students, Olson discovered that she loved working with master’s students.
“UHV’s size and the welcoming community atmosphere made me feel at home,” she said. “I discovered a passion for working with master’s students here. One of the advantages of UHV is that students and faculty are able to build a relationship of trust as our students learn.”
In 2021, Olson was appointed to her position as associate provost for research and dean of graduate studies, a role that helps expand the university’s research operations and graduate programs. During the past three years, she has taken the lead in initiatives to encourage UHV’s research and graduate programs, including the UHV Discovers series, which highlights some of the research conducted by UHV faculty and students.
In addition, Olson spearheaded the university’s reaffirmation of accreditation from the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges. UHV recently had its campus visit from the accreditation committee, and the university’s reaffirmation is expected to be finalized in December.
“Dr. Olson has demonstrated her passion for excellence and her commitment to cooperation time and again over the year,” Chance Glenn said. “I know that she will be a strong leader who can support UHV in its ongoing mission to offer an excellent, affordable education for our students.”
As she steps into this new role, Olson hopes to improve upon and increase the university’s ongoing efforts to coordinate and cooperate between departments.
“In the past, I’ve been able to work with departments and reach across typical boundaries to accomplish important goals,” Olson said. “It’s a focus that I am happy to bring to the table. I’ve learned that if we can get the right people in the room, there’s so much we can accomplish together.”
The University of Houston-Victoria, located in the heart of the Coastal Bend region since 1973 in Victoria, Texas, offers courses leading to more than 50 academic programs in the schools of Arts & Sciences; Business Administration; and Education, Health Professions & Human Development. UHV provides face-to-face classes at its Victoria campus, as well as an instructional site in Katy, Texas, and online classes that students can take from anywhere. UHV supports the American Association of State Colleges and Universities Opportunities for All initiative to increase awareness about state colleges and universities and the important role they have in providing a high-quality and accessible education to an increasingly diverse student population, as well as contributing to regional and state economic development.