Dr. Henry Wiebe, professor and chair of engineering management at the University of Missouri-Rolla, has been appointed vice provost for UMR Global effective Feb. 1, 2003.

The position was created to consolidate and provide marketing visibility for UMR’s various off-campus endeavors. This will include distance and continuing education programs, the international affairs office and the Video Communications Center.

"With recent advances in technology, the education enterprise has become more hybrid and global," says UMR Provost Y.T. Shah. "This new position will help UMR achieve its goals for globalization of its education efforts. Dr. Wiebe has done an excellent job promoting this effort in his interim capacity during the past year and I have complete confidence that he will help UMR grow its image globally through successful educational partnerships with other national and international institutions."

"This position presents both a great challenge and a splendid opportunity," Wiebe says. "UMR has so much to offer its constituents throughout the state and beyond. I am looking forward to helping create an awareness of this capability and the contribution UMR can make."

A member of the UMR faculty since 1969, Wiebe has served as interim vice provost of distance and continuing education since Sept. 1, 2001. He also has chaired UMR’s engineering management department since July 1999, after serving as interim chair from July 1997 to July 1999.

In his new position, Wiebe is responsible for expanding UMR’s distance and continuing education programs, as well as promoting and marketing the programs. He also will oversee UMR’s international affairs office, which formerly was part of the Division of Student Affairs.

Among UMR’s distance education programs are online master’s degrees in engineering management, systems engineering, mining engineering and manufacturing engineering. Several degree programs are also offered at UMR’s Engineering Education Center in St. Louis as well as to the military through cooperative agreements with the U.S. Army at nearby Fort Leonard Wood, Mo. In addition, UMR offers specialized certificate programs that can be taken by students and later applied toward a master’s degree. These are offered online and at all off-campus locations.

Wiebe holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in industrial engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia and a Ph.D. in industrial engineering from the University of Arkansas. He is an expert in the areas of total quality management and the application of management tools such as statistical process control in all aspects of organizational management. He has been a primary resource for UMR in the area of continuous process improvement, and also has been a member of the Missouri Quality Award Board of Examiners.

Wiebe is a fellow in the American Society of Engineering Management and is active in the American Society for Engineering Education.