Indian Chancellor earns highest status in research for HU

HOUSTON: Under the stewardship of its first Indian born woman Chancellor, Houston University has received the Tier One recognition, the highest designation given to any institution which have "very high research activity".

Renu Khator, who born in Uttar Pradesh, took over as the Chancellor and President of Houston University in January 2008 which has more than 65,000 students and a budget that exceeds USD 1.3 billion.

"I give the credit to our faculty, our staff, our students and our Board of Regents who have been so supportive the last two or three years," she said, adding her administration has been firmly committed to this Tier One goal.

Khator, who this week begins her fourth year in office, had predicted a five-to-seven year journey towards the Tier One status.

"I knew there was work to be done... we have been focusing so hard on every single piece, trying to make sure we can support the faculty, support the staff in doing the kinds of things that will take us toward Tier One," she said.

The Carnegie Foundation is a US research centre that evaluates and classifies colleges and universities based on empirical data. It classifies more than 4,000 colleges and universities in the US. Less than 300 are classified as research universities.

In its newly published classifications, it cites 109 varsities for Top Tier designation which have very high research activity.

"Yes, we have obtained the designation of Tier One research, but I want to see our university be nationally competitive in support and services it provides to students, and in the kinds of students it attracts," Khator said.