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Christopher Welna |
CHICAGO -- Christopher Welna has been selected as
president of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM), a consortium
of 14 leading liberal arts colleges that includes Monmouth.
Welna, who is currently executive director of the Helen
Kellogg Institute for International Studies at the University of Notre
Dame, will officially begin his duties on July 1.
As the sixth president of ACM, Welna will lead the consortium’s
ongoing collaboration in off-campus study, faculty development, and
other areas.
“I’m honored and excited to have the opportunity to work with the
outstanding colleges that have joined forces through the ACM,” said
Welna. “For generations, these colleges have enriched the careers of
their students and faculty through ACM’s first rate off-campus programs.
As the next president, I hope to help carry forward ACM’s legacy of
academic excellence through innovative collaboration.”
Welna will succeed Elizabeth R. Hayford, who is retiring after more
than 22 years of service as ACM president. “The presidency of ACM has
been a most interesting and satisfying career, which allowed me to work
with numerous ACM faculty and staff to create valuable projects,” said
Hayford. “Chris Welna has the professional background and personal
qualities to maintain and expand consortial initiatives.”
In addition to directing the Helen Kellogg Institute for
International Studies, Welna has served as faculty director of the Latin
American Area Studies Program at Notre Dame. In those positions, he has
administered a wide range of programs for faculty and students,
including research fellowships and grants, international conferences,
scholarly publications, internships and international student exchanges.
A native of Minnesota and graduate of Carleton College, Welna earned
a master’s degree from Princeton University and a Ph.D. in political
science from Duke University. He has extensive international experience.
As a student and through a Thomas A. Watson Fellowship after college,
Welna studied and conducted research in Latin America, Africa, Europe
and the Middle East. He also served for eight years as a program officer
with the Ford Foundation in Mexico, Central America, and Brazil.
The Associated Colleges of the Midwest (ACM) is a consortium of 14
academically excellent, independent liberal arts colleges in Illinois,
Iowa, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Colorado. Founded in 1958, ACM is one of
the few consortia of colleges in the U.S. devoted primarily to academic
concerns.
For more than 40 years, ACM has been a leader in international study
for undergraduates. ACM currently administers off-campus study programs
in Costa Rica, Tanzania, India, Russia, the Czech Republic, Italy,
England, and the U.S.
The ACM member institutions are Beloit College, Carleton College, the
College of the University of Chicago, Coe College, Colorado College,
Cornell College, Grinnell College, Knox College, Lake Forest College,
Lawrence University, Macalester College, Monmouth College, Ripon
College, and St. Olaf College.
Released
by the Office of College Communications
Barry McNamara, Associate Director of College Communications
Phone: 309-457-2117
Fax: 309-457-2330
