A Conversation with Thompson Rivers University President, Dr Kathleen Scherf

I was honoured that Kathleen Scherf, TRU's new President, took the time to have this conversation with me about our amazing university. We talk about Kathleen's background, the nature of a TRU education, and also about her experiences managing a large, diverse, rapidly changing institution.Here is a roadmap for the audio:   01:08: how did you get interested in teaching and academia     02:46: How did you become a Frankenstein scholar     07:55: How did you get  into university administration   10:05: Tribute to Roger Barnsley   11:14 - Changing the Culture of TRU   11:58 - How did you find about TRU President Opening and fall               in love with TRU    13:34 - breaking the mold of a University President a bit   14:28 - the mom car, the parking ticket on the first day      16:43 - has been kind of unusual been a challenge, being who              you are and trying to being a role model   19:05 - what makes a TRU education special - your vision?    21:23 - small classes and large classes   23:13 - value of President teaching first year students   25:54 - how do liberal arts students become financially               independent?  27:45 - a  comprehensive university preparing students well  28:34 - Law School update  33:54 - House of Learning update, other capital projects - Old              Main repairs  36:17 -  Managing a large, diverse, rapidly changing institution:               collegial governance, transparent leadership,               team concept