Ashley begins to build his team with hiring of No. 2 Smatresk

Thursday, March 8, 2007 | 7:14 a.m.

Incoming UNLV Executive Vice President and Provost Neal Smatresk - the campus' day-to-day operations boss - is ready-made for Nevada's tumultuous higher education system.

Soon after he began his current job as vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Hawaii, Manoa, the president of the Hawaii higher education system resigned in a bitter dust-up with the Board of Regents that made national news.

Hawaii was in the process of creating a system office separate from the flagship Manoa campus, and a year after firing the president, regents axed the campus chief, too. Then there was an earthquake, a flood, a fire and fallout from a major budget deficit and subsequent tuition increase.

"He was tested under fire," UNLV President David Ashley said in announcing Smatresk's hire last month as his No. 2. All of his references "had absolute praise for his ability to be cool and keep the academic side focused as he dealt with crisis and with all of the conflicting politics."

Having taken over the leadership reins in July from longtime President Carol Harter, Ashley's hiring of Smatresk is the new president's first concrete step toward developing a leadership team and his vision for the university as a research institution.

As executive vice president and provost, Smatresk, 55, will be responsible for day-to-day, internal operations of the university, freeing Ashley to concentrate on promoting UNLV to donors, community leaders and state and federal lawmakers. Smatresk will also have a strong say in who Ashley hires for several other open vice president and dean positions, participating in the interviews while finishing up the school year in Manoa.

"UNLV is one of the most dynamic institutions in the United States, and this is a tremendous opportunity for me to be a part of building something very significant in the region," Smatresk said. "UNLV is poised on the brink of really emerging as one of the premiere research institutions in the next decade."

With a doctorate in zoology from the University of Texas at Austin and a history of landing research grants from such heavy hitters as the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health, Smatresk sees himself as professor first, administrator second. He rose through the ranks of the University of Texas at Arlington - biology professor, department chairman, dean of the College of Sciences - before moving to Hawaii.

"He's demonstrated a commitment to both research and undergraduate education, and that is something we were looking for," said Patricia Iannuzzi, dean of Libraries at UNLV and chairwoman of the search committee that unanimously recommended Smatresk for the job.

Throughout his career, Smatresk built community outreach programs to improve college attendance and to nurture an interest in science careers among students as early as grade school. Colleagues in Texas also credited him with resurrecting a faltering statewide science and engineering fair.

"He will be a dynamic leader of the university there," said Robert McMahon, dean of the honors college at Arlington and research colleague of Smatresk in animal physiology.

"He understands in the modern world that the university needs to interact with its community and be a benefit to its community."

Colleagues also praised Smatresk for his ability to build consensus and sell a vision.

Gary Ostrander, vice chancellor of research and interim dean of Manoa's medical school, credited Smatresk with keeping Manoa, one of the country's top 25 federally funded research institutions, from losing its accreditation. He said Smatresk worked tirelessly to improve student advising, class schedules and the university's overall responsiveness to student needs.

"I think in four to six years, the University of Hawaii will have moved up a lot on these beauty contests, things like U.S. News rankings, and the credit for it will go to Neal," Ostrander said. "He's certainly seen a lot of diverse experiences and I think he'll handle everything you throw at him."