Kenneth S. Smith
1 Seventh Street
Radford, VA 24141
Home: (540) 633-1001 Office: (540) 231-1807 E-Mail: kensmith@vt.edu
EDUCATION:
PhD, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies, December 2010.
Virginia Tech, Blacksburg VA
Master of Public Administration, May 1993
Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
Bachelor of Arts in Political Science, Magna Cum Laude, December 1990
Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA
PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE:
Vice Provost for Resource Management and Institutional Effectiveness
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
January 2013 to Present
Duties:
• Provide strategic leadership in resource management and performance analyses in support
of executive decision making for $1.3B research university.
• Advise the provost and the chief financial officer on the strategic allocation of financial and
space resources in accomplishment of the university strategic plan.
• Provide leadership and executive direction on the allocation of academic space and its
improvement.
• Provide strategic leadership of the university’s efforts to demonstrate effectiveness.
Oversee the operations of the offices of Institutional Research and Effectiveness,
Assessment and Evaluation and the Center for Survey Research.
• Represent the provost in a variety of internal and external roles and provide staff support for
university wide committees.
• Lead the university’s regional accreditation compliance efforts and serve as SACSCOC
accreditation liaison.
Significant Accomplishments
• Enhanced strategic management and decision support for budget development and
execution. Since 2011 our academic budget development system has analyzed $174M in
cumulative budget requests resulting in $48M in funded requests for colleges, research
institutes and administrative units.
• Enhanced the quantitative and qualitative connections between planning, budgeting and
performance measurement to strengthen the institution’s continuous improvement
environment.
• Led the programming and interior design of a new $42.5M, 74,000 GSF classroom building
that will provide a significant increase in the institution’s flexible classrooms. This building is
under construction and will open July of 2016.
• Led revisions to university strategic plan scorecard and the development of an academic
implementation plan for the major goals of the institutional strategic plan.
• Led development and preparation of fifth-year interim compliance report for regional
accreditation (SACSCOC).
• Coordinate administrative aspects of partnership with Carilion Clinic and our jointly owned
medical school.
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Associate Provost for Resource Management and Planning
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
January 2010 to December 2013
Duties:
• Provide critical resource management analyses in support of executive decision making.
• Oversee the allocation of special funds managed by the office of the provost in support of
strategic institutional goals.
• Serve as the primary point of contact for the provost on matters of academic space working
closely with a variety of standing and special committees on capital planning, renovation of
classrooms, campus master plan, and related issues.
• Oversee the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness and the Survey Research
Center.
• Represent the Provost and provide staff support for university wide committees related to
public service division of the university, strategic budgeting and planning, and university
centers.
• Provide oversight and support for management of provost office resources.
Significant Accomplishments
• Designed, negotiated and implemented a multiyear funding plan to support enrollment
growth strategies resulting in significant new resources for all colleges.
• Planned and coordinated the temporary and permanent relocation of multiple academic
departments including Chemistry, Communications, Population Health Sciences and a
social science research institute to accommodate construction and renovation projects or to
improve space efficiency and quality.
• Initiated a recurring cycle of classroom and instructional lab renovation that improved or
added 4200 instructional stations across 62 classrooms and instructional labs over a four
year period.
Finance Officer – Office of the Senior Vice President and Provost
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
August 2002 to January 2010
Duties:
• Conduct analyses of academic resource issues and university performance outcomes and
provide written and verbal recommendations for action to the Provost and other executive
staff.
• Assist in the development and coordination of budgets for the major academic units of the
university including all colleges, the research division, the graduate school and
undergraduate education.
• Design, communicate and implement funding formulas for distribution of strategic initiative
pools.
• Support the fiscal planning and management of all departments and centers reporting
directly to the Senior Vice President and Provost including the Provost’s academic space
management functions.
• Work closely with the Office of Institutional Research and Effectiveness on recurring and ad
hoc reporting requests and data modeling.
• Provide staff support to committees of Board of Visitors and other university study groups
and committees as requested.
Significant Accomplishments:
• Cooperatively developed performance data driven funding models that allocated more than
$15.7 million in FY2008-09.
• Created university and college level scorecards for reporting progress toward the goals of
the university strategic plan.
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Created a balanced plan that linked the six-year financial projections required by the
restructuring act with the projected cost of implementation of the major initiatives of the
university strategic plan.
Linked hiring plan approvals and start-up fund distribution to direct the distribution of more
than $20.6 million in start-up funds for new faculty.
Created an academic department metrics report that provides a six year graphical portrait of
trends in academic department resource inputs, teaching and research outputs and ratios.
Led the successful efforts to implement annual continuous improvement reporting
processes for 18 departments in the Senior Vice President and Provost and the VP and
Dean of Undergraduate Education senior management areas.
Managed the negotiation and approval of a management agreement for the financial and
academic components of the joint degree program with Georgetown University.
Established a standard budget process for the Parents Fund of Virginia Tech.
Staffed a review of summer sessions at Virginia Tech that has resulted in improvements in
strategic planning of summer operations and course offerings.
Staffed an Ad Hoc Committee of the Board of Visitors charged with reviewing and
negotiating sensitive affirmative action issues with both internal and external university
constituencies.
Secured a positive audit rating in 2006 review of all departments in the Senior Vice
President and Provost senior management area.
Assistant Director of Budget Operations
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
October 1999 to August 2002
Duties:
• Coordinated the development, implementation, and reporting of the university’s state
appropriated instructional and administrative programs.
• Prepared written and financial analyses and made recommendations for action to university
senior managers.
• Prepared quarterly reports on financial activity and budget changes for presentation at the
Virginia Tech Board of Visitors meetings.
• Served as staff to ad hoc review and planning committees to study and make
recommendations for improvements in university programs.
• Supervised the development, monitoring, and execution of centrally managed budget pools.
• Supervised and coordinated the work of three budget analysts.
Significant Accomplishments
• Created improvements in the collection and analysis of information on the university’s
central fixed costs including the fringe benefits budget allowing more accurate budgeting for
those costs and more timely communication of projected savings in those areas.
• Conducted analyses and protocols for the creation of a self-supporting enterprise fund for
distance learning programs.
• Integrated the various revenue and expense analysis elements that went into creation of the
university budget document allowing immediate feedback on the impact of funding
decisions.
• Improved the methods and internal processes for calculating and negotiating the capitation
fee agreement with the University of Maryland for the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of
Veterinary Medicine.
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University Division Budget Manager
Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Blacksburg, VA
July 1997 to September 1999
Duties:
• Coordinated the development and implementation of the revenue and expense budgets for
the university’s instructional, administrative, sponsored, and financial aid programs.
• Prepared analyses and recommendations for university senior managers, state oversight
agencies, and the university Board of Visitors.
• Assisted college fiscal personnel in management and implementation of university budget
plan.
Significant Accomplishments:
• Used understanding of state budgeting systems and processes gained at the Virginia
Department of Planning and Budget to make improvements in the monitoring and updating
of the university’s external budget operating plan.
• Helped draft the university’s position allocation control policy and to implement a position
control tracking system.
• Made improvements in the processes for budgeting and communicating allocations for the
Eminent Scholar program.
State Budget Analyst
Virginia Department of Planning and Budget, Richmond, VA
September 1995 to June 1997
Duties:
• Coordinated and reviewed all aspects of operating and capital budget development for the
state Departments of Housing and Community Development, Forestry, Historic Resources
and the Virginia Racing Commission.
• Reviewed agency operating and capital budget requests and made written
recommendations for action.
• Prepared legislative and budget proposals for these agencies for inclusion in the
Governor’s legislative submission.
• Prepared and presented financial and program analyses for budget agency leadership,
cabinet secretaries and the governor’s staff.
• Monitored the policy and budgetary deliberations of committees and subcommittees of the
General Assembly and prepared weekly reports for the Governor’s staff.
Significant Accomplishments:
• Researched, developed and presented a plan for consolidation of small agency payroll
processing services into a central services bureau to achieve cost savings and operational
improvements. The recommendations were accepted by the Secretary of Finance and
implemented by the Department of Accounts. The bureau was established successfully
and continues to provide services to 52 state agencies.
Senior Budget Analyst
Virginia Department of Conservation and Recreation, Richmond, VA
April 1993 to August 1995
Duties:
• Directed the development and tracking of a $35 million operating budget for a diverse state
agency.
• Developed and managed internal budget tracking systems to implement approved budget
plans.
• Assisted agency leaders and department administrators around the state in understanding
and managing their available resources.
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Prepared analyses and made presentations of financial and program information for agency
management.
UNIVERSITY SERVICE
Campus Development Committee – 2010 to Present
Academic Support Committee - 2009 to Present
Emergency Management and Risk Assessment Committee - 2009 to Present
Summer Session Advisory Committee – 2006 to Present
Review Committee – Women’s Center at Virginia Tech – 2008
Summer Session Review Committee – 2006 and 2011
TEACHING SERVICE:
ELPS 6084 – Finance in Higher Education
Spring 2013
Spring 2015
ELPS 6094 – Educational Administration Processes and Skills
Summer I 2008
Summer I 2009
ELPS 6054 – College and University Administration
Spring 2007
Spring 2010
Spring 2014
Spring 2008
Spring 2011
Spring 2009
Spring 2012
PROFESSIONAL AND COMMUNITY SERVICE
Chair of Quality and Research Committee, North American Association of Summer
Sessions 2012-2015
Interim Regional Vice President, North American Association of Summer Sessions 2011-12
Treasurer, North American Association of Summer Sessions - 2006-2011
Treasurer, Montgomery-Floyd Chapter of the American Red Cross - 2006-2009
Member, Montgomery, Floyd, Christiansburg United Way Community Investment Financial
Review Team - 2003-2006
Member, Scholarship Review Committee, Southern Association of College and University
Business Officers (SACUBO) - 2002-2005
MILITARY SERVICE
Virginia Air National Guard -1988 to 1994, Richmond, Virginia
United States Air Force - 1984 to 1988, Okinawa, Japan and Sacramento, California
PROFESSIONAL PRESENTATIONS:
Joint Statistical Review 2014: Report of Preliminary Results.
Presentation at the North American Association of Summer Sessions Annual Meeting
Chattanooga, Tennessee - November 2014
Instructional Space: Maximizing Use and Capacity on Your Campus
Joint presentation with Arci Fleet and Amanda Vasquez, University of Texas El Paso, Tom
Shaver, Ad Astra Information Systems and Renae Fry, North Hennepin Community College at
workshop sponsored by Academic Impressions
San Diego, California - November, 2014
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Increasing Enrollment with Summer and Special Sessions
Joint presentation with Cindy Deluca, University of South Florida and Steven Lee, University of
Oklahoma at workshop sponsored by Academic Impressions
Chicago, Illinois - June, 2014
Optimizing Enrollment: From Summer Sessions to Special Sessions
Joint presentation with Cindy Deluca, University of South Florida and Jamie Blilela, Montclair
State University at workshop sponsored by Academic Impressions
Scottsdale, Arizona - December 2013
Joint Statistical Review 2013: Report of Preliminary Results.
Presentation at the North American Association of Summer Sessions Annual Meeting
Denver, Colorado – November 2013
Applied Research: Two Case Studies of Using Summer Session Research to Structure and
Restructure Summer Activity.
Presentation at the North American Association of Summer Sessions Annual Meeting
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – November 2012
Characteristics of Students Who Enroll in Summer Session.
Joint presentation with Katherine Read, Virginia Tech at the Association for Institutional
Research Forum
New Orleans, Louisiana – June 2012
Characteristics of Students Who Enroll in Summer Session.
Presentation at the North American Association of Summer Sessions Annual Meeting
Chicago, Illinois – November 2011
Chautauqua or Chicago – Summer at the Turn of the 20th and the 21st Centuries
Presentation at the North American Association of Summer Sessions Annual Meeting
Biloxi, Mississippi - November 2009
Crisis on Campus – Responding to Campus Emergencies
Joint Presentation with Allyson Morris, Regents University, Doug Lee, University of Iowa, and
Donna Shea, Boston University, at the North American Association of Summer Sessions
Annual Meeting
Arlington, Virginia - November 2008
Planning for Departmental Emergencies
Joint Presentation with Noel Byrd, Virginia Tech at the North American Association of Summer
Sessions Annual Meeting
Arlington, Virginia - November 2008
Rediscovering the Value of Summer Session: The Virginia Tech Experience
Presentation made at invitation of a Special Summer Review Committee at North Carolina
State University
Raleigh, North Carolina - February 2008
Making Square Initiatives Fit Into Round Numbers
Joint Presentation with Dixon Hanna and Dwight Shelton at the Society for College and
University Planning Annual Meeting
Chicago, Illinois - July 2007
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Rediscovering the Value of Summer Session: The Virginia Tech Experience
Presentation made at the invitation of the North Carolina Association of Summer Sessions
Sunset Beach, North Carolina - October 2007
Use of a Weighted Metric Resource Allocation Model at Virginia Tech
Poster Presentation at the National Association of College and University Business Officers
Annual Meeting
Baltimore, Maryland - July 2005
PUBLICATIONS:
Smith, K., & Read, K. (2012). Student Characteristics and Summer Enrollment: A Comparison
of Earlier Research with Findings from Nationally Representative Data. Summer Academe (7).
Available online at: http://ojs.lib.umanitoba.ca/index.php/sa_jhe/article/view/503.
Smith K. (2013). Making Summer Sessions Successful: 4 Key Factors. Available online at:
http://www.academicimpressions.com/news/making-summer-and-special-sessions-successful4-key-factors.