Robin E. Bowen was elected the 12th president of Arkansas Tech University by the Tech Board of Trustees on April 22. She succeeded Robert Brown on July 1. She previously served at Fitchburg State University in Massachusetts, where she was vice president for academic affairs, executive vice president and provost from 2011-2014.
Bowen holds a doctorate in higher education from Texas Tech University and a master’s in education from the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville and a bachelor’s from the University of Kansas.
Bowen is the first female president of a public four-year university in Arkansas.
Distinctions such as the “first female” are becoming more rare, but they still make news. How does being the first female president of a public four-year university in Arkansas affect how you do your job?
I am honored to have that distinction; however, I don’t believe being the first female president of a public university affects how I perform my job. I rarely think about being a “first.” I employ a distributive leadership model and believe I am collaborative and inclusive in my leadership, but I don’t think that it is unique to women. That being said, being a female president adds a few unique nuances to some social situations. For example, we’ve had questions arise regarding how to refer to my husband, Doug, and what role he will play in various situations.
Arkansas Tech saw the greatest rise in students among Arkansas colleges and universities this fall (5.6 percent) making it the third-largest university in the state. What’s behind this growth and what’s your growth strategy for Tech in the future?
I have to thank my predecessor and the outstanding faculty and staff at Arkansas Tech for the growth. In my opinion, the key factors in this growth include having one of the most beautiful campuses in the state, strong academic programs staffed by outstanding faculty and a culture of caring for one another. In my first six months here, I spent most of my time meeting with faculty, staff and students, asking them to identify the most important aspects of Tech that we should preserve. The most consistent answer was our culture of people caring about one another. So whatever our growth strategy is, it is important that the culture at Tech is something we preserve.
If you could offer Tech students just one nugget of wisdom to help them navigate life, what would it be?
To persevere. As Abraham Lincoln said, make sure you have your feet in the right place, then stand firm.
What’s the role of a university in preparing students for life after college?
Preparing for a career is important and we want our students to be able to graduate and secure jobs that provide good wages. However, higher education should be more than just career training. A broad general education develops other skills, such as critical thinking, oral and written communication, and quantitative and qualitative reasoning. It also provides us with a broad context to consider issues facing our communities, our nation and our world. Research shows that individuals who graduate from college have better salaries, are more satisfied with their jobs, are healthier overall and are more likely to be involved in their communities. And, of course, higher education is critical to economic development. Not only does higher education provide a qualified workforce, it also expands the state and federal tax base that allows our legislators to provide necessary services to our citizenry. So, yes, higher education should be practical at the individual level and lead to fulfilling careers, but it is also paramount to the greater public good.
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