Keith J. Roberts

Dr. Roberts is a Senior Research Fellow at the Institute for International Studies in Education (IISE) at the University of Pittsburgh. He was previously a Visiting Scholar at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah (2008-2009). Roberts had been the Vice President for Academics at Brigham Young University Hawaii from January 1, 2000 to April of 2008. During that time the university had been ranked by U.S, News in the top tier of Comprehensive Bachelors Degree Granting Universities in the Western United States for eight straight years. It had been ranked as high as fourth in three different years. He specializes in using data to make informed policy decisions and was able to improve the graduation rate and the ranking of the university without increasing the budget. In addition, Consumer Guide has ranked BYU Hawaii as the best value in private higher education in the United States each of the two years that the rankings were awarded.

An expert in university accreditation, he has served as a member and vice chair of several accrediting committees for the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and has served on review panels for the WASC Commission. Dr. Roberts had led and participated in college and university accreditation in both the North Central Association (NCA) and the WASC. He has conducted workshops and presented papers at both the NCA and WASC.

Brigham Young University Hawaii, the most culturally diverse university in America, has a unique relationship with the Polynesian Cultural Center in Laie Hawaii and Dr. Roberts has been a consultant and advisor on using higher education institutions to support sustainable cultural tourism. During his seventeen years at BYU-Hawaii he has been instrumental in coordinating the educational program with the needs of both the Polynesian Cultural Center and the students from the islands represented at the Center. He has personally developed the articulation and training agreements with Jinan University Tourism College and the Cultural Parks at Overseas China Town (OCT) in Shenzhen and has advised the development of the Thai Cultural Park Associated with Phranakhan Rajabhat in Bangkok.

Under Dr. Roberts' guidance, BYU Hawaii has established unique culturally sensitive articulation programs with universities in China, Mongolia, Thailand, Fiji, Samoa, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and Tahiti.

Previous to his work at BYU-Hawaii he was Assistant to the President at Milwaukee Area Technical College where he was responsible for institutional research, strategic planning and development.

His most recent academic presentations were delivered at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences in December of 2005, South China Normal University, Guangzhou in April of 2006, Phranakhan Rajabhat University, Bangkok in July of 2006, State University of Surabaya, Indonesia in November of 2008, and the Ministry of Education and Training (MOET) in Danang, Vietnam in September of 2009. He is currently listed on the Fulbright Senior Specialist Roster

Dr. Roberts' current interests are the history of education in the world with a special emphasis on the interaction between and among cultures in the development of higher education. He taught the History of Higher Education in the Graduate Program at Marquette University in 2009 and has completed a consultancy as Curriculum Development and Academic Review Specialist for an ADB TA Preparing the Higher Education Sector in Vietnam also in 2009.