New
Department:
Organizational
Leadership, Policy,
and Development
Effective July 1, 2009, a
new department has been created
that integrates the business and
marketing education, human
resource development and adult
education, and comprehensive
WHRE programs from the
Department of
Work and Human Resource
Education (WHRE) into the
department formerly known as
Educational Policy and
Administration (EdPA). The
name of this new department is
Organizational Leadership,
Policy, and Development (OLPD).
It will offer exciting
opportunities for collaboration
and interdisciplinary education
and research. Click
here for details. |
Current Research Interests
- Higher education finance
- Institutional advancement
- Community
engagement
- Organizational theory
Profile
Over the past ten years, my work as both practitioner and scholar has focused
on helping colleges and universities build strategic alliances with external partners
to the mutual benefit of institutions and constituencies they serve. My ultimate
goal is to help higher education leaders and external partners (policy makers, community
partners, alumni, and donors) work together more effectively to better serve public
needs while building long-term financial stability for public colleges and universities.
At present, I am engaged in three distinct lines of scholarship around these
broad university relations themes. First, I am conducting a 20-year longitudinal
study to explore factors associated with strong and weak state support for higher
education institutions since 1985. By examining this issue through rational, political,
and cultural frameworks, I hope to shed light on ways that state policy makers and
higher education leaders might build stronger partnerships to better serve the educational
needs of their citizens. This work is funded by the
Spencer Foundation. Second,
I have developed a line of research to examine how pre-college, college, and post-college
experiences shape civic and philanthropic behaviors of college alumni. My research
on this topic has been greatly informed by my practitioner experiences as a major
gifts officer at the University of Wisconsin Foundation and
University of Minnesota
Foundation.
My final line of scholarship focuses on community engagement efforts underway
at U.S. colleges and universities. Specifically, these studies examine boundary
spanning roles of engagement leaders, factors that inhibit or enable the adoption
of an engagement agenda, and how institutional mission and context shape the ways
in which campuses become involved with their communities. My hope is that this collective
body of work will help institutions increase their capacity to collaborate with
external partners and better serve the public good.
Selected Publications
Peer Reviewed Articles
Weerts, D. J., Cabrera, A. F. & Sanford,
T., (in press). Beyond giving: Political advocacy and
volunteer roles of college alumni. Research in Higher
Education
Weerts, D. J. & Sandmann, L. R. (in
press). Community engagement and boundary spanning roles at
public research universities. Journal of Higher
Education.
Weerts, D. J., & Ronca, J. M. (2009).
Using classification trees to predict alumni giving for
higher education. Education Economics 17(1),
95-122.
Weerts, D. J., & Sandmann, L. R. (2008).
Building a two-way street: Challenges and opportunities for
community engagement at research universities. Review of
Higher Education, (32), 1, 73-106.
Weerts, D. J., & Ronca, J. M. (2008).
Characteristics of alumni donors who volunteer at their alma
mater. Research in Higher Education 49(3).
Weerts, D. J., & Ronca, J. M. (2007).
Profiles of supportive alumni: Donors, volunteers, and those
who “do it all.” International Journal of Educational
Advancement, 7(1), 20-34.
Weerts, D. J. & Ronca, J. M. (2006).
Examining differences in state support for higher education:
A comparative study of state appropriations for research
universities. Journal of Higher Education, 77(6),
935-965.
Book
Weerts, D. J. (2002). State governments and research universities:
A framework for a renewed partnership. New York: RoutledgeFalmer.
Edited Volumes and Special Journal Issues
Weerts, D. J. (2007). Transforming campuses and communities
through public engagement: Emerging roles for institutional advancement. International
Journal of Educational Advancement 7(2), London: Palgrave.
Weerts, D. J. & Vidal, J. (2005). Enhancing alumni research:
European and American perspectives. New Directions for Institutional Research,
No. 126, San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
Education
- Ph.D., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1999, higher
education administration
- M.S., University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1996, higher
education administration
- B.S., University
of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, 1993, major: communication and journalism, minor:
business administration
Honors and Awards
- Rising Scholars Award, National Forum on Higher Education for the Public
Good, University of Michigan (2002)
- Bobby Wright Dissertation of the Year Award, Association for the Study
of Higher Education (ASHE) (2000)
For more information about David Weerts, see his curriculum vitae [PDF]
Revised November 2009
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