Radomski named WISCAPE director

Noel Radomski, policy and planning analyst at the University of Wisconsin–Madison Office of Corporate Relations, has been named director of the Wisconsin Center for the Advancement of Postsecondary Education (WISCAPE).

“Noel has dedicated his entire career to this university,” says Julie Underwood, dean of the UW–Madison School of Education and co-director of WISCAPE. “His knowledge of this campus and the landscape of postsecondary education in general will be invaluable in this position.”

WISCAPE, a unit within the School of Education, was established in 2001 to study the challenges confronting postsecondary education and to bring national and local university leaders, researchers and policymakers together to discuss issues and solutions. The center promotes interaction among stakeholders through its research, conferences and forums, and professional education.

“WISCAPE is at a critical juncture in its development from a relative newcomer to an established postsecondary education research center,” says Underwood. “Noel has the opportunity to refocus WISCAPE’s activities, expand its research portfolio and carve out a niche within the current scholarship in postsecondary education.”

Radomski says his vision is for WISCAPE to “become an innovative, interdisciplinary postsecondary education center” that will attract a diverse pool of researchers and educators.

“I will bring a collaborative approach and seek to attract faculty, staff, graduate students, emeritus faculty and staff, and others outside the academy to create and disseminate knowledge on critical postsecondary education policy issues,” Radomski says.

Radomski will manage WISCAPE’s in-house research projects and coordinate the external research projects it supports. Also, he will be responsible for developing funding sources for research, integrating research into WISCAPE’s forums and professional education programs and serving as chief liaison to WISCAPE’s faculty and staff affiliates, advisory boards, and academic departments. He will start on Monday, Aug. 21.

“The first thing that I will do is conduct a comprehensive five-year program review,” says Radomski. “This will provide a blueprint for future collaborative research projects, educational and outreach programs, and the center’s governance structure.”

Since 1997, Radomski has served in a variety of capacities at UW–Madison, primarily as a policy and planning analyst in the chancellor’s office from 1997-2006 and as a policy and planning analyst in the Office of Corporate Relations from 2003-06. He also is a lecturer in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis.

He currently serves as an alderperson on the city of Madison Common Council representing a district in west Madison, including the University Research Park area.

Radomski holds three degrees from UW–Madison: a B.A. in political science (1988) and an M.S. (1991) and Ph.D. (1996) in educational administration. His research interests include the entrepreneurial college and university, campus planning and undergraduate education.

He succeeds Henry Lufler Jr., who stepped down after five years as WISCAPE’s managing director in early August. Lufler will continue to serve as associate dean for external relations in the School of Education and will continue to work on research and writing projects as a WISCAPE staff affiliate.