Oklahoma State System of Higher Education Chancellor Glen D. Johnson was recently named chair of the State Higher Education Executive Officers (SHEEO) Executive Committee. Last year, Johnson was elected to serve as SHEEO chair-elect during 2017-18 and as chair during 2018-19. Due to a vacancy in the position of chair, Johnson has assumed the chair role ahead of schedule.
Prior to serving as chair-elect, Johnson served the SHEEO Executive Committee as treasurer during 2016-17. He was previously elected to the Executive Committee in 2014 and 2015, and also served consecutive two-year terms in 2008 and 2010.
“We are honored to have Chancellor Johnson serve as our chair this year,” said Dr. Robert Anderson, president of SHEEO. “His breadth and depth of experience make him an ideal fit for this position. I look forward to working with Glen on an agenda that serves all our states by increasing the number of graduates and workforce opportunity.”
The Executive Committee is responsible for shaping SHEEO’s federal priorities and strategies and for leading its communications with Congress, the U.S. Department of Education and other federal agencies.
“I am honored to step forward and serve as chair of SHEEO’s Executive Committee,” said Johnson. “I look forward to working with the other members to ensure our nation’s higher education system equips our graduates with the skills and knowledge necessary for a globally competitive workforce.”
SHEEO, the national association of the chief executives of statewide governing boards and coordinating boards for postsecondary education, works to assist its members and states in developing and sustaining excellent systems of higher education.
Johnson was named chancellor of the Oklahoma State System of Higher Education in January 2007 following a national search. Before assuming the role of chancellor, he served as the 16th president of Southeastern Oklahoma State University in Durant for 10 years. He was also director of public policy and adjunct professor of law at the University of Oklahoma College of Law. Prior to his work at OU, he served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1982 to 1996 and was speaker of the House from 1990 to 1996. At the time of his election as speaker, he was the youngest sitting speaker in the United States. Johnson is an honors graduate of OU with an undergraduate degree in political science and a juris doctorate from the OU College of Law, and is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Hall of Fame in 2006 and the Oklahoma Higher Education Hall of Fame in 2016.