O’Brien accepted into Harvard Leadership Program

FARMINGTON – Chris O’Brien, Faculty Senate president-elect and University of Maine at Farmington assistant professor of history has been accepted by the Harvard Graduate School of Education into its Management Development Program.

This Harvard leadership program prepares participants with a deeper understanding of effective leadership in higher education and how to become a more valuable contributor to broader institutional goals. According to its website, the program brings together members of academic leadership to help them develop the skills and insight necessary to think more strategically, balance workplace demands and provide forward-thinking leadership.

“I’m very excited about this opportunity to work with experts in the field on new ways to think about some of the critical challenges that face universities today,” said O’Brien. “The program brings together professionals from around the world to explore how universities work beyond the classroom and to help create new solutions for today’s problems and best practices for the future.”

O’Brien has been involved with higher education for nearly 25 years, and currently serves as assistant professor of history at University of Maine at Farmington. He was recently awarded promotion and tenure at UMF and elected president of the Faculty Senate—where he has also served as vice president.

He has worked in multiple research and leadership positions throughout his career and was recently awarded a Resident Scholar fellowship at Oregon State University for summer 2011, where he will have access to the OSU Special Collections Library. O’ Brien received his B.A, and M.A, at University of Iowa and his Ph.D. in U.S. History at University of Kansas.

Each year, more than 3,000 educational leaders from around the world participate in Harvard Graduate School of Education professional programs.