Provost Lynn Pasquerella has been the University of Hartford's chief academic officer since May 30, 2008. The provost oversees all academic-related functions, including undergraduate and graduate programs, faculty, information technology, and libraries.

In announcing Pasquerella's appointment as provost, University of Hartford President Walter Harrison said "I believe we have found absolutely the right person to lead the academic enterprise of the University at this point in our history. She brings superb credentials as a scholar and teacher, a first rate intellect and a finely honed sense of values, great administrative experience, leadership on the national level in graduate studies, and a demonstrated record of success in attracting and maintaining research support and funding."

Pasquerella has already made a lasting impact on the University. During her first year on the job, she administered the hiring of new deans for The Hartt School and the College of Education, Nursing and Health Professions. She is spearheading the University's involvement in a project to help the people of Kenya's Lake Region address issues such as water purification, sustainable agriculture, and women's safety. She also established the "Difficult Dialogues" program, which gives faculty and staff a forum to reflect on how to promote a more just community, both on and off campus.

Pasquerella's other plans for the University include enhancing its research profile; implementing a new academic strategic plan; and continued support of the creative and artistic endeavors of faculty, students and staff.

Prior to the University of Hartford, Pasquerella served as vice provost and dean of the graduate school at the University of Rhode Island. A professor of philosophy who specializes in medical ethics, her previous academic career was spent at the University of Rhode Island, where she rose through the professorial ranks, became associate dean and later interim graduate dean before becoming dean and vice provost.

At the University of Rhode Island, Pasquerella also served as chair of the Institutional Review Board and Council for Research. She is a Fellow in the John Hazen White Sr. Center for Ethics and Public Service and was a professor of medical ethics for two years, from 1993Ð95, in the Brown University Medical School's Affinity Group Program.

A magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Mount Holyoke College (AB, 1980) and Brown University (PhD, 1985), Pasquerella is a recipient of the University of Rhode Island's Teaching Excellence Award. She has published extensively in the areas of medical ethics, theoretical and applied ethics, metaphysics, public policy, and the philosophy of law.

In 1998, Pasquerella was honored by Change Magazine and the American Association of Higher Education as one of the nation's "Young Leaders of the Academy." Her leadership includes service on several departmental, college, and university committees, the New England Association of Schools and Colleges accreditation teams, membership on Day Kimball Hospital's ethics committee and chair of its Institutional Review Board, membership on the Rhode Island Health Department's Institutional Review Board and on the advisory board for the Women's Adult Correctional Facility in Rhode Island. Pasquerella serves on the senate of Phi Beta Kappa, the nation's oldest honor society.

Pasquerella and her husband, John Kuchle, who is a biologist and photographer, live in South Woodstock, Conn. They have twin sons, Pierce and Spencer.