By NICK BUDD
Hays Post
It could be considered dangerous to use the word “experiment” in Kansas, with the negative connotation the word has regarding state government. But it takes on a more positive spin when used by Dr. John Ryder in reference to Fort Hays State University’s approach to higher education.
Ryder, one of five finalists for the FHSU provost position, was on campus Wednesday to speak with community and campus groups.
“When the expectations and situations are changing in the world, our institutions of higher education have to change with them and it’s not clear what that should look like, so we have to start trying things,” Ryder said. “I don’t know of many other state universities that are being as experimental as Fort Hays State is.”
He added he was impressed by the “experimental spirit” of Fort Hays State regarding the university’s collaborative approach to higher education.
“Some people regard this place as a small place in western Kansas, but in reality, we’re connected to the world,” he said.
Ryder has a variety of experiences in higher education bolstering what could be the next step in his career. He currently serves as provost and professor of philosophy at the American University of Ras Al Khaimah, a three-year-old institution in the United Arab Emirates. Previously, he served as president of Kahzar University in Azerbaijan for two years and also worked in a variety of increasing capacities in the State University of New York System, including the Director of International Programs and dean of the school of Arts & Sciences at SUNY-Cortland.
“(SUNY-Cortland) was a very rural environment like FHSU, so I know the context well enough,” Ryder said. “I also think the international character of the work I’ve done will help because there’s an interest here in expanding the international profile.”
From an interaction standpoint, Ryder believes the world is getting “smaller and smaller.” Therefore, he says higher education’s biggest challenge is understand its role and portraying it in a proper manner to society.
“We’ve got to understand ourselves better than we already do and make that case in a sustained and compelling way to the community and to the political people,” Ryder said. “There are a lot of things … we can help people understand better.”
If he gets the job, it will be Ryder’s third move to different country in the past five years.
“When you move around as much as I have, especially internationally, things that seem like a big shakeup don’t seem like that to me,” Ryder said. “It was scarier going from the United States to Azerbaijan.”
As Fort Hays State continues to grow as a leader in higher education, he says FHSU’s next step is ultimately up to the president, but did say the institution needs to “fill out” its commitment to community engagement.
“(FHSU) is already doing that but there are a lot of directions in where that can go,” Ryder said. “That’s the direction in which several state universities around the country are taking.”