Wright State well represented on state higher education committee

Daniel Palmer, former Student Government president at Wright State, was appointed to Ohio’s Undergraduate Mission Study Committee.

Daniel Palmer, former Student Government president at Wright State University, feels at home in the Ohio Statehouse in Columbus. He should. He has been there numerous times testifying on issues that affect college students across Ohio.

Now Palmer has been appointed to the Undergraduate Mission Study Committee so he will spend the next few months meeting with other committee members and Ohio legislators to improve undergraduate education.

“I’m excited to have been appointed by Ohio House Speaker Larry Householder to the Undergraduate Mission Study Committee that was established by Sub. House Bill 66,” said Palmer. “This bill was one of the many that Student Government at Wright State testified on over the last year and a half.”

But Palmer isn’t the only Wright State presence on this important committee. Dan Krane, president of Wright State’s Faculty Senate and professor of biological sciences, is also on the committee due to his role as chair of the Ohio Faculty Council, a group that represents faculty interests at the public four-year institutions in the state.

“When most policymakers in Columbus picture an Ohio college student, Daniel’s image is probably the very first that comes to mind,” said Krane. “It should not be surprising at all that the speaker of the House would single Daniel out to serve on this state-level committee.”

Krane explained that the 132nd General Assembly’s House Bill 66 underwent a number of substantial changes relative to how it was first introduced. One of the purposes of the bill is to establish the Undergraduate Mission Study Committee that will evaluate each state university’s efforts to secure participation in the undergraduate mission by its tenured faculty.

“Daniel’s testimony before House and Senate committees was instrumental in getting student seats on the study committee and then in getting them full voting privileges,” noted Krane. “Over the past two years, he has been an extremely effective voice for students and higher education in general within the Statehouse.”

Palmer said that testifying in front of the Ohio House of Representatives and Senate was one of the best experiences of working in Student Government. He has also met with former Ohio Gov. John Kasich and current Gov. Mike DeWine.

Dan Krane, chair of the Ohio Faculty Council and president of Wright State’s Faculty Senate, is a member of Ohio’s Undergraduate Mission Study Committee.

Krane and Palmer hold two of the 15 committee seats, which include two students, two faculty members, two chief academic officers, chair of the Ohio Faculty Council, chancellor of higher education, president of the Inter-University Council, plus six state legislators.

This is not the first time Krane and Palmer have worked together. As chair of the Ohio Faculty Council, Krane spearheads an effort to reduce the cost of textbooks statewide. At Wright State, he brought together a group of faculty, students, department chairs and administrators to develop ways to reduce the cost of course materials. Palmer was an active participant and advocate for the initiative.

Palmer served as student body president for the 2018-2019 academic year and participated on the Model United Nations team for four years. He graduated from Wright State on May 4 with a bachelor’s in business economics and will attend the University of Toledo College of Law beginning this fall.

Krane is an international DNA expert, testifying as an expert witness in more than 100 criminal trials in which DNA evidence was presented. He is also the president and CEO of Forensic Bioinformatics, which has reviewed testing from hundreds of cases around the world every year since 2002.

House Bill 66 also establishes the Subcommittee on Standards for Teacher Preparation of the Educator Standards Board, addresses higher education cyber security safe harbor and requires public schools to notify a parent or guardian if a student does not arrive at school.