Ozarks Profile

Executive assistant to Southwest Missouri State University President John H. Keiser. Baker is also chancellor of the Research Campus at Mountain Grove, coordinator of the fourth campus (Virtual University) and director of the Ozarks Studies Institute. SMSU is a multi-campus university system, with enrollment of 18,207 in fall 1998. SMSU's stated purpose is developing educated persons while focusing on five themes: professional education, health care, business and economic development, performing arts and a statewide mission in public affairs. Baker has been with SMSU since 1993. He is executive director of the Council on Public Higher Education and a member of the National Council of University Research Administrators and the American Society for Training and Development. Baker is also president of Urban Districts Alliance and chair of the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce Think Tank. He is a member of the Civic Park Advisory Committee, Ozarks Technical Community College Regional Technical Education Council and the Community Improvement District Steering Committee.

Age: 50

No. of years in Springfield/area: Six

Education: Baker holds a bachelor's degree in sociology and a master of public administration degree from Boise State University. He received his PhD in education from the University of Idaho.

Early career: After graduating from high school in Middlesboro, Ky., Baker served four years in the U.S. Air Force. After being discharged, he enrolled at Eastern Kentucky University, transferring to Boise State in 1971. After receiving his bachelor's degree, Baker took a job as a research analyst with the city of Boise and Boise State University. Baker held a number of positions at Boise State University, including director of the Boise Urban Research Center, director of research and sponsored projects, and director of the Hemingway Western Studies Center until he took his current position with SMSU in 1993. While in Boise, Baker was also a partner in a real estate research firm that specialized in location studies for shopping centers and smaller retail establishments. He also co-owned a company that used computer technology to determine the condition of road surfaces on interstate highways in Idaho, Arizona and California.

Current projects: Baker is involved in long-range planning for SMSU, developing distance learning capabilities, increasing the research capacity of the Mountain Grove campus and developing the Ozarks Studies Institute. Baker is host of a new television program, "OzarksWatch Video Magazine," for SMSU. "Outside the university, I am very involved in the development of Springfield's center city through the Urban Districts Alliance, the proposed Community Improvement District and Civic Park." Baker was recently appointed to an advisory committee by the Missouri Coordinating Board for Higher Education to help develop the Missouri Learner's Network.

Management philosophy: "Hire good people, make sure they understand the mission of their unit as well as the mission of the organization, provide resources necessary for them to complete their jobs, support them, hold them accountable to clear and mutually agreed-upon standards, and leave them alone to do their work."

Spare-time pursuits: "In my spare time, I like to play basketball, jog and attend SMSU events of all kinds. I also enjoy reading, especially articles on instructional technology and learning theory."

Family data: "I am married and have no children, just a number of household pets."