Mary Ryan has been selected as the inaugural director of the Campus Compact for the Great Plains. The new organization is a coalition of colleges and universities in Nebraska, Kansas, and South Dakota that seek to advance the public purposes of higher education. As director, Ryan will spearhead coordinated civic and community engagement efforts among the region’s colleges and universities. She will work with students, faculty, staff, and community organizations to support greater integration of activities in civic and service learning, community based research, national service, and other areas in which institutions of higher education can contribute to the wellbeing of communities across the Great Plains. The Campus Compact for the Great Plains will be housed at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.
For more than a quarter century, Ryan has held administrative posts at the University of Kansas. She began as an admissions officer and then served as director of new student orientation. In 2001, Ryan was named associate dean at the at the Edwards campus in Overland Park. In 2013, Ryan was promoted to assistant vice chancellor at the Edwards campus.
Ryan is a native of Omaha, Nebraska. She earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism at the University of Kansas and a master’s degree in guidance and counseling from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.