Kennedy’s position filled by alumnus
After former USU director of government relations, Michael Kennedy, was hired as Sen. Orrin Hatch’s chief of staff, Neil Abercrombie was hired to fill the position in order to be prepared for the approaching legislative session.
Abercrombie has connections to government officials in Utah cities and towns due to his involvement with the League of Cities and Towns, USU spokesman John DeVilbiss said, which will benefit USU in the coming legislative session.
Kennedy’s hire as Hatch’s chief of staff was a surprise to USU officials, but USU President Stan Albrecht spent much of his time since the government relations position opened finding a comparable new faculty member to fill it, said Brent Miller, vice president of research.
The hope is that Abercrombie will be able to positively impact the fate of USU funding in coming years.
“He will help us obtain appropriate funding for research which is made up partly from earmarks, but also from stimulus funding,” Miller said.
It is uncertain whether earmarks will occur the same way they have in the past because the “political climate is changing,” he said.
“Articulating our needs for funding support to key legislators was an essential responsibility of Michael Kennedy as it will be for Abercrombie,” DeVilbiss said.
The hope is that Abercrombie will be a successful link between Utah legislature and express the need for these earmarks.
USU officials including Albrecht and Miller believe Abercrombie will be capable of this due to his network and knowledge of political process. Miller said beyond these aspects, Abercrombie also has a deep commitment to see public policy become effective.
Because of his statewide connections, Abercrombie will be essential in find the “right legislators that hold the purse-strings,” DeVilbiss said.
Abercrombie’s preparation for the government relations position was in some ways opposite Kennedy’s preparation, Miller said, because he worked for six years with state government affairs prior to USU employment while Kennedy worked with federal government.
“We are confident that Neil Abercrombie is capable of doing everything Michael Kennedy did,” Miller said.
President Albrecht said he is pleased about the decision to hire Abercrombie into the faculty because he won’t need any “start-up time.”
An alumnus of USU who received his master’s degree in 2002 in political science, Abercrombie worked directly with academic institution policy issues while working with the Utah Policy Advisory Committee and Utah Benchmarking Committee.
Abercrombie will adopt all the responsibilities Kennedy had as the director of government relations, which may involve teaching political science courses.
With Abercrombie’s experience working as an intern in Washington D.C., as well as his involvement with the League of Cities an dTowns, the Capitol Club and Salt Lake Chamber of Commerce, Albrecht said he believes Abercrombie will “hit the ground running.”
“Abercrombie’s work with the League of Cities and Towns has heightened his awareness of the value that higher education plays in the lives and economies of citizens in our rural areas,” DeVilbiss said. “He knows and appreciates the impact of our branch campuses and education centers around the state.”
He is currently working toward a Ph.D in public administration at the University of Utah, which Miller said is unusual. Abercrombie views the business of public policy as something he wants to understand in a serious academic way, he said.
– catherine.meidell@aggiemail.usu.edu