Office of the President
Biography
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Dr. Kevin P. Reilly began his tenure as the sixth president of the University of Wisconsin System on September 1, 2004. His vision for the state’s public university system is that it should be Wisconsin’s premier developer of advanced human potential, of the jobs that employ that potential, and of the flourishing communities that sustain it.
The UW System’s two doctoral universities, 11 comprehensive universities, 13 freshman-sophomore UW Colleges, and statewide UW-Extension annually serve more than 170,000 resident students and reach more than one million Wisconsin citizens through its outreach, broadcast arm, and continuing education programs.
President Reilly leads a UW System workforce of some 40,000 faculty, academic and classified staff, and graduate assistants. He is also responsible for the UW System’s $4.3 billion annual budget, made up of state support, federal funding, tuition and fees, and private gifts.
President Reilly is committed to providing access and ensuring quality, and has full executive responsibility for the operation and management of UW System. He works closely with the state of Wisconsin, 14 Chancellors, and the Board of Regents, the system’s 18-member citizen governing board.
Through the Wisconsin PK-16 Leadership Council, the Committee on Baccalaureate Expansion and other partnerships, Reilly also collaborates with the Wisconsin Technical College System, the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction, and the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities.
Dr. Reilly served as Chancellor of UW-Extension from July 2000 through August 2004. His responsibilities included leading programs in continuing education, Cooperative Extension, distance education, small business development, Wisconsin Public Radio, and Wisconsin Public Television. He served as Provost and Vice Chancellor of Extension from 1996 to 2000. A native of New York City, Reilly came to Wisconsin from the State University of New York System, where he was Associate Provost for Academic Programs and then Secretary of the University.
He has served as Chair of the American Council on Education's Commission on Adult Learning and Educational Credentials, as a member of the Board of Directors for the University Continuing Education Association and Vice Chair of its Commission on Leadership and Management, and on the Executive Committee of the National Association of System Heads.
He was also a member of the Steering Committee of the four statewide Wisconsin Economic Summits, sponsored by the UW System, and a founding member of the UW System Federal Relations Council. He has authored and edited books and articles on higher education policy, accreditation, biography, and Irish studies.
Dr. Reilly earned his B.A. at the University of Notre Dame, and his M.A. and Ph.D at the University of Minnesota. He and his wife, Kate, reside at Brittingham House in Madison, Wisconsin. They are the parents of three children.