Patricia A. Ackerman Named Chair of Ohio
University Board of Trustees
Contact: George E. Mauzy Jr., media specialist, (740) 597-1794
Editors: A headshot of Ackerman can be downloaded at www.ohiou.edu/news/pix/ACKERMAN.JPG
A portrait of Ackerman can be downloaded after 6 p.m. ET at www.ohiou.edu/news/pix/ACKERMAN_PAT.JPG
ATHENS, Ohio (June 29, 2000) -- Patricia A. Ackerman will be named chair of the Ohio University Board of Trustees on Friday, June 30. With the appointment, she becomes the first African-American woman and K-12 educator to occupy the position.
Ackerman will preside in 2000-01 over the 11-seat board, whose members are appointed by the governor with the consent of the Ohio Senate. The board includes nine standing members who serve nine-year terms and two student members who serve two-year terms.
"I have true pride in being appointed chair of the Board of Trustees," Ackerman said. "Who would have dreamed this could happen to me? This is one of the highest honors I've ever received and it is special to me to have the opportunity to serve in this role."
Ackerman served last academic year as vice chair, a position to be held in 2000-01 by M. Lee Ong, marking the first time the top two positions on the board have been occupied by women.
"Pat has made a very important contribution to our board because she's the only professional educator in the group and therefore, she has a special sensitivity to situations and problems in an educational institution," Ohio University President Robert Glidden said.
A Cleveland, Ohio, native and Glenville High School graduate, Ackerman was appointed to the board in 1995 by Gov. George Voinovich. She will retire in August after working 35 years in K-12 education. The last 25 years she worked in the Cleveland Heights-University Heights school system, where she has served as director of curriculum since 1993.
"I'm looking forward to reducing the anonymity and raising the visibility of the Board of Trustees to students and faculty," Ackerman said. "Retirement will give me the opportunity to devote quality time to the responsibilities of being the chair. I plan to hold informal chats with the students on a regular basis."
Ackerman served two years as president of the National Alliance of Black School Educators and was inducted into the NABSE Hall of Fame in November 1995. She is a member of the Ohio Alliance of Black School Educators, the Association for Supervision and Curriculum Development and a variety of other professional education organizations.
Ackerman created and chaired the Ohio African-American Education Roundtable, a coalition of educators and community leaders. She also founded and served a six-year stint as principal at Taylor Academy, an alternative school for at-risk students. In 1980, she created the Cleveland Heights High School Distinguished Alumni Hall of Fame.
In September 1989, Ackerman served as an adviser to President George Bush and the National Governor's Association, which was chaired by then-Arkansas Gov. Bill Clinton, to prepare for the nation's first Education Summit.
She has been named Outstanding Alumna of Ohio University's College of Arts and Sciences and a Distinguished Alumna of Cleveland State University, and was given the Kent State University President's Award for Social Responsibility.
Ackerman earned a bachelor's in English from Ohio University in 1966, a master's in administration from Cleveland State University in 1974 and a doctorate in administration from Kent State University in 1983.
"I'm going to take advantage of this opportunity," Ackerman said. "We're all life-long learners, and students want information about real-world experiences."
