Dr. Wayne Smutz

Associate Vice President for Outreach and Executive Director of the World Campus at Penn State

Wayne Smutz is associate vice president for academic outreach and executive director of the World Campus at Penn State. In these roles, he oversees the delivery of credit-based programs for adult learners online through the World Campus and through continuing education units at Penn State's twenty-four campuses. Wayne has been at Penn State and in continuing education for nearly thirty years, serving in roles related to credit and noncredit program development, needs assessment, conferencing, marketing, and e-learning.

Wayne is chiefly committed to increasing adult-learner access to Penn State and to creating an infrastructure that ensures the success of its enrolled students. As leader of an organizational change effort, Wayne is focused on the creation of ONE Penn State, learner-centric approach to the adult student. The initiative seeks to develop a common approach to adult learners in both the World Campus and individual Campuses, significantly increasing scholarship dollars for adults, enhancing adult learner support infrastructure specifically in academic advising and increasing one-on-one contact of advisers and adult learners, and career counseling services specifically for adults. As a result of these and other efforts, adult learner scholarship funding tripled in the past year and part-time adult learner enrollments increased more than 25 percent between the World Campus and Continuing Education at the Campuses.

An active member of UCEA for more than twenty years, Wayne currently serves on the board, focusing on revitalizing the role of Communities of Practice. He also is on this year's national program committee and The Frandson Award committee. He previously served for two years as chair of the Community of Practice on Outreach and Engagement and of the Division of Continuing Professional Education. Wayne has spoken and written extensively on a variety of issues related to continuing education and his most recent article, "Economic Development in Challenging Times: The Penn State Outreach Response," was published in the Continuing Higher Education Review, Volume 72, Fall, 2008.

Wayne holds a Ph.D. in higher education and an M.A. in political theory from Penn State. He received a bachelor's degree from the University of California, Berkeley. He and his wife, Linda, have five children.