Klara Jelinkova, who has earned a reputation as an innovator in nearly three decades in information technology at major U.S. research universities, has been named vice president and chief information officer of the university, Harvard announced today. Jelinkova begins her term of office on September 13th.
“After Harvard, Klara brings a long track record of building effective and collaborative IT organizations to support the teaching and research tasks of a number of higher education institutions, with particular expertise in developing dynamic online learning platforms, creating robust research computing resources, and enabling a secure IT infrastructure, ”said Executive Vice President Katie Lapp. “We are happy that she is starting here.”
Jelinkova comes to Harvard from Rice University, where she served for more than six years as vice president of international business and IT. Prior to that, she was CIO and Senior Associate Vice President at the University of Chicago and held senior IT positions at Duke University and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
“I am very pleased to have been elected Vice President and Chief Information Officer of the university,” said Jelinkova. “I look forward to working closely with the strong HUIT team to build on their successes and pursue new and exciting opportunities to support Harvard’s academic and research efforts in the future.”
While at Rice, Jelinkova led the build and development of a new IT organization while incorporating the viewpoints of key university-wide stakeholders across schools and departments.
“We brought Klara to Rice from the University of Chicago 6½ years ago to build a central information technology organization, and she has had spectacular success in every way from cybersecurity to investing in research computing and building new administrative systems,” said Rice- President David Leebron ’77, JD ’79. “She’s just one of the best people I’ve ever worked with. Her creative, collaborative, and innovative approaches have expanded her impact on the university in many dimensions beyond IT, including international programs and digital education. We deeply regret losing her in the face of her exceptional accomplishments, but we are delighted that she will continue to contribute, both inside and outside of Harvard, to advancing university academic missions through thoughtful and courageous approaches to technology. “
“What I really noticed about Klara is that she has a unique energetic and active interest in every part of the university,” said Sarah Whiting, dean of the Harvard Graduate School of Design, who worked closely with Jelinkova during her tenure at Rice before she took the helm at GSD in 2019. “I consider her a humanist as she is always very engaged and excited to take part in conversations that span departments, schools and units. She really sees things the way a university citizen should. “
Jelinkova also oversaw the broader integration of technology into teaching and learning at Rice, working closely with faculty members, Rice Online, and the Center for Teaching Excellence to address emerging needs. These relationships led to the successful migration to full online learning at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020 and later to a dual learning platform for the following fall.
“We are at a crucial point in higher education where we have a chance to really rethink how we can serve more people,” said Jelinkova. “New online learning platforms offer us the opportunity to think differently about how we can address existing inequalities in education. And Harvard is at the forefront of this conversation. I look forward to working closely with colleagues to resolve this issue, which I believe is one of the most pressing issues of our time. “
During her tenure at the University of Wisconsin, Jelinkova chaired the Equal Opportunities and Diversity Committee of the Information Technology Department, and she has continued to invest significant time in equality and inclusion-related issues by educating her staff through professional development and formal training. She also led new digital accessibility initiatives at the University of Chicago and Rice.
As the university’s CIO, Jelinkova will also serve as the information technology leader for the Faculty of Arts. “I’m very excited to have Clare coming to Harvard in this very important role,” said Claudine Gay, Edgerley Family Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences. “She understood so clearly that success is about more than just the ‘hardware’ of technology and resources; it is also about the “software” of people and culture. She has shown an unwavering commitment to equality, inclusion and belonging in the teams she leads, and has cultivated strong and collaborative relationships with faculties, researchers, staff and students to ensure that her work is aligned with their needs and interests. “
“My personal commitment to equal opportunities, diversity and inclusion is based in part on my own experience as a woman and immigrant to this country who made it to the CIO at a large university,” said Jelinkova, who originally came from what is now the Czech Republic. “I am grateful that I have always found the places where I have worked to work towards engaging different voices, and I share that commitment deeply in my own work.”
During her time in Rice, Jelinkova supported the Center for Research Computing’s growth by working with the faculty, administration, and board of directors to establish a dedicated research computing foundation, research facilitator positions to advise faculties, and a specialized position to support the faculty in ensuring the security of their research data. Her time at Duke, Chicago, and Rice was also marked by her leadership role in cybersecurity as an institutional priority
“Throughout her career, Klara has worked closely with the faculties to provide them with the information technology support they need for their research and teaching,” said Harvard Provost Alan M. Garber. “She did it extremely well. She understands that the modern university can only thrive if it protects data security and privacy while at the same time ensuring the free exchange of ideas. She is an innovator who recognizes that these two goals are not in conflict. They are complementary. I look forward to working with her to explore new ways to use the technology to advance the university’s academic mission. “
Jelinkova continued her own education while at Rice, completing a Masters of Education from Boston University while she began her PhD at Johns Hopkins University. She holds a BA in Economics and Slavic Languages from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
Jelinkova succeeds Anne Margulies, who retired in May, as CIO. Her husband Jim and her 21-year-old chinchilla will join her in the Boston area.
source https://collegeeducationnewsllc.com/klara-jelinkova-named-vice-president-and-university-cio-harvard-gazette/
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