Lara Luetkehans
Indiana University of Pennsylvania Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Lara Luetkehans has been selected to participate in a national leadership program.
Provost Luetkehans was selected by the American Association of State Colleges and Universities for its Executive Leadership Academy. The ELA is a program designed to prepare experienced administrators for senior executive roles across colleges and universities.
ELA is offered through a collaborative partnership among AASCU, the Council of Independent Colleges, and the American Academic Leadership Institute. Together, these organizations provide participants with a comprehensive experience that emphasizes leadership development, mentorship, and professional networking.
The program opened with the first of two in-person seminars in June, bringing cohort members together for an intensive learning experience led by current and former presidents, as well as subject matter experts, addressing key issues shaping higher education today.
“IUP is extremely fortunate to have creative, committed, and hard-working leaders who never lose focus on doing everything within their power to help students to succeed, while advancing the strategic priorities of this university,” IUP President Michael Driscoll said. “I am honored to work with them as members of my leadership team.
“Selection for this important leadership program reflects Provost Luetkehans’ status as a nationally respected scholar and administrator and allows her to keep current with the changing landscape of higher education, helping IUP to continue its commitment to meeting the needs of our students today and for the future,” he said.
Provost Luetkehans is one of 36 higher education professionals chosen for this year’s cohort; she is the only administrator from a State System of Higher Education university selected for this honor, and one of only four administrators from Pennsylvania institutions.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity to engage in this kind of intentional leadership development,” Provost Luetkehans said. “Working with President Driscoll and alongside peers from across the country is helping me focus on strategies to strengthen IUP’s capacity to support our students’ success—bringing back insights to better support the faculty and staff who work most closely with our students every day.”
As provost at IUP, Luetkehans is responsible for leadership of the Division of Academic Affairs, which encompasses IUP’s colleges that offer more than 160 majors and graduate programs: Arts, Humanities, Media, and Public Affairs; College of Osteopathic Medicine; Eberly College of Business; Education and Human Services; Health Sciences; John J. and Char Kopchick College of Natural Sciences and Mathematics; and the University College, which includes the Cook Honors College, the Department of Student Affairs, Student Success, and Disability Access, and the Military Leadership Minor.
The Division of Academic Affairs also oversees graduate education and academic planning, IT Services, University Libraries, the Career and Professional Development Center, Liberal Studies, the Office of International Education, and the Registrar’s Office, along with several other programs, centers, and institutes.
In June, Provost Luetkehans was an invited presenter for the PA Chamber of Business and Industry’s Healthcare Summit, discussing “Building the Healthcare Workforce of Tomorrow: Challenges, Innovation, and Partnerships.”
She has been in her role as provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at IUP since 2022, previously serving as dean of IUP’s College of Education and Communications (now the College of Education and Human Services).
In 2025, Provost Luetkehans was recognized by the Educational Policy Leadership Center as a 2025 Educational Policy Leadership Program Alumni Award recipient, an award presented annually to individuals who have demonstrated exceptional leadership in education policy and who have completed an EPLC leadership program.
Provost Luetkehans came to IUP from Northern Illinois University in DeKalb, where she served as a department chair and faculty member in educational technology, research, and assessment. She earned her doctorate in instructional technology from the University of Georgia in Athens, her master’s in library and information science from Dominican University in River Forest, Illinois, and her bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Loyola University in Chicago.
Since its founding in 1875, IUP has evolved from a teacher-training institution into a doctoral research university recognized for its commitment to student success and achievement. IUP’s Impact 150 comprehensive campaign is designed to honor a legacy of educational excellence while looking toward a future of innovation, public service, and leadership in healthcare education, including the first college of osteopathic medicine at a public university in the Commonwealth.