New UPG, UPJ Presidents Named

Sharon P. Smith
University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg

Sharon P. Smith, vice chancellor for academic affairs, provost and vice president for academic affairs, and special projects advisor for National University and for the National University System, has been named president of the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg, effective July 1.

Prior to being named to her positions at National University and the National University System, Smith served from 2001 to 2006 as professor of management systems and dean of the Colleges of Business and the Faculty of Business at Fordham University. She also was dean of the College of Business Administration at Fordham from 1990 to 2001. Smith’s professional experience includes service as an economist for the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and as a district manager for American Telephone and Telegraph Company.

“Sharon Smith is an accomplished administrator, a distinguished researcher and educator, and an experienced member of the financial services industry who has the talent and ability to lead the Greensburg campus to even higher levels of attainment and impact,” said Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg. “We welcome Dr. Smith to the University of Pittsburgh community and have every confidence she will be successful in her new role.”

“Dr. Smith has an established record of distinguished performance in strategic planning, reinvigorated academic programs, and administration,” said Pitt Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor James V. Maher. “That background, combined with her strong interest in a team-oriented environment and her experience in working effectively with community leaders, will stand in her good stead as she helps to shape an exciting future for our academic efforts in Greensburg.”

Smith served as governor of the Security Traders Association from 1997 to 2005; a trustee of St. Barnabas Hospital, Bronx, N.Y., from 1997 to 2006; chair of the Partners in Health Board of Trustees in 2000-02; president of the NASDAQ Stock Market Educational Foundation, Inc., in 2000; and public governor of NASD, Inc., from 2000 to 2006. She is the coauthor of Finding the Best Business School for You: Looking Past the Rankings (Praeger Publishers, 2006) and Faculty Retirement in the Arts and Sciences (Princeton University Press, 1991) and has published more than 40 professional articles and book reviews.

Smith was a Visiting Fellow with the New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations at Cornell University during the 2005-06 academic year and a Visiting Senior Research Economist for Princeton University in 1988-90.

She received her A.B. degree, summa cum laude, in 1970; M.A. degree in 1972; and Ph.D. degree in 1974, all in economics from Rutgers University.

Jem Spectar
University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown

Jem Spectar, provost and vice president for academic affairs at Western Oregon University, has been named president of the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown, effective July 1.

Prior to becoming provost at Western Oregon University, Spectar was associate provost for academic affairs at the University of Scranton, director of studies at Princeton University, and assistant dean of students at the University of La Verne, in La Verne, California.

“Provost Maher and I look forward to working with Dr. Spectar and the University of Pittsburgh at Johnstown community to ensure the continuing success of the campus under his capable leadership. Jem Spectar is a visionary leader and celebrated teacher,” said Pitt Chancellor Mark A. Nordenberg. “He has the skills and experience necessary to build effectively upon the strengths of our Johnstown campus and to enrich the lives of students, faculty, staff, and administrators.”

“As a senior administrator at several institutions of higher education, Dr. Spectar has established a leadership style marked by an emphasis on consultation, collaboration, and transparency,” said Pitt Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor James V. Maher. “His outstanding academic and administrative leadership as well as his capacity for fundraising, friend-making, and fostering positive community relations make him the ideal president for our Johnstown campus.”

Spectar also was an associate professor of law at the University of La Verne, a lecturer in political science at Princeton University, and a professor of political science at the University of Scranton. He was awarded the 1998 Professor of Distinction Award at La Verne College of Law and the 1995 Professor of the Year, Legal Studies, at the University of LaVerne.

Spectar has published numerous scholarly articles on international law and made presentations at professional conferences on issues involving human rights, the global commons, and international health. In addition to his membership in a number of professional organizations, he is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Conference of Academic Deans.

Spectar received the B.A. degree in international studies in 1989 from the University of La Verne; the M.B.A. degree in 1989 from Frostburg State University in Frostburg, Md.; the M.A. degree in 1992 at The George Washington University in Washington, D.C.; the J.D. degree in 1992 at the University of Maryland Law School; and the M.A. degree in politics in 1997 and the Ph.D. degree in political science from Claremont Graduate University, Claremont, Calif.