STAYING IN HER LANE.

• Author: Qubein, Nido

Western Carolina University Chancellor Kelli Brown joined High Point University President Nido Qubein in the Power List interview, a partnership for discussions with influential leaders. Interview videos are available at www.businessnc.com.

Kelli Brown has led Western Carolina University in Cullowhee since 2018, overseeing a $300 million budget and about 12,000 students, including 1,700 graduate-level students in Asheville. About 20% of students take online courses, while 40% are the first in their families to attend college. It is one of four UNC campuses that offer the N.C. Promise program offering tuition of $500 per semester for in-state undergraduate students. Brown has undergraduate and master's degrees from The University of Toledo and a Ph.D. from Southern Illinois University. She is a trained dental hygienist.

This story includes excerpts from Brown's interview and was lightly edited for clarity.

How does Western Carolina prepare graduates for a global world?

As a regional comprehensive university, one of the things we really value is the idea of having a strong liberal studies, a strong general studies, the critical thinking skills, oral and written communication skills and the ability to work with diverse people. That's something that we take very seriously. So if you're a nurse that's coming out, we want you to be able to understand that nursing is changing and be able to adapt to that. The same with teacher education, which is very different than what it is today.

Do you share my premise that the typical university has stellar faculty who are experts in their disciplines, but they didn't take courses on the pragmatism that the business world and nonprofits demand today?

For the successful universities, we've had to change. I was not trained to be a teacher, I was trained in my area of public health. So I think that is very true. But I think that successful universities, places like Western, have been able to adapt by making sure we are selecting the right kind of faculty that come in. Selecting faculty that want to work with students outside the classroom and inside the classroom, helping them grow.

Many of our folks in our College of Business and our College of Engineering all have experience in the corporate world. In our College of Engineering, it's required.

What three primary characteristics do you look for in a faculty member?

A faculty member has to understand our mission. We are a regional comprehensive university...