Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs 
News Release
University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point
University Relations and Communications
May 6, 2013
Summers named provost, vice chancellor at UW-Stevens Point
After conducting a national search, the University of
Wisconsin-Stevens Point has appointed a Whiting resident as the chief academic
officer of the university.
Greg Summers has been named provost and vice chancellor
for Academic Affairs, a position he has held on an interim basis since 2011,
when former provost Mark Nook took the job of senior vice president for
Academic and Student Affairs for UW System.
“Greg is an innovative and collaborative leader,” said
Bernie Patterson, chancellor of UW-Stevens Point. “He not only created the
vision of Thriving Communities, the university’s strategic initiative to become
more relevant and responsive to community needs, he is spearheading the
implementation of academic programs to bring the concept to life.”
As interim provost, Summers was instrumental in the
revision of the general education program at UW-Stevens Point, which emphasizes
clear learning outcomes aimed at providing a broad-based education. He also
managed budget and personnel, helped to build a new enrollment management unit,
created a new Inclusive Excellence Leadership Team and is rekindling the
university’s tradition of Convocation.
“I’ve been privileged to spend my entire career at
UW-Stevens Point,” said Summers, 44. “I’m proud of the good work we do
here as public educators, I’m honored to be entrusted with this opportunity,
and I look forward to working with my colleagues across campus to continue to
provide the best education possible to our students and the many communities we
serve.”
During his 12-year career at UW-Stevens Point, Summers
has also served as the associate vice chancellor for Teaching, Learning and
Academic Programs and as a faculty member and chair of the Department of
History.
His research and teaching interests are in United States
environmental history, the history of technology and consumerism. He is the
author of the book, “Consuming Nature: Environmentalism in the Fox River
Valley, 1850-1950,” through the University Press of Kansas. He is also working
on another book, “The Comforts of Nature: A Brief Natural History of the
American Home,” through the University of Washington Press.
Summers holds a doctorate in U.S. history from
UW-Madison, a master’s degree in U.S. history from the University of California
at Santa Barbara and two bachelor’s degrees, one in history and another in
physics, from the University of Akron.