Dr. Lenny R. Klaver
Vice Chancellor – University Relations & Advancement
Dr.
Lenny Klaver serves as Vice Chancellor for University Relations and
Advancement at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. He began duties
at UW-Parkside as Department Chair of Health, Physical Education, and Athletics
and Director of Athletics and in June of 1996. In April of 2000, he
was promoted to Vice Chancellor for University Relations and Advancement.
In University Relations and Advancement, Klaver serves as the chief development officer with major gifts as his focus. He is also the University’s legislative liaison, and oversees; corporate, special, and scholarship gift officers, alumni affairs, the annual fund, marketing, publications, public relations, university graphics, and the University’s web site. Noteworthy accomplishments include securing several large private gifts to UW-Parkside; $4.5M for the upcoming renovation and construction of the $38M Communication Arts Building, $1.3M in private gifts for the Sports and Activity Center on campus, a recent gift of $500,000 for enhancing a recital hall in the music department, a substantial gift of $400,000 from Microsoft for the International Olympiad for Informatics held at UW-Parkside, $200,000 for a new Modern Languages Laboratory, several endowment gifts in the $50,000-$100,000 range, and consecutive record-setting years in fundraising that have seen the UW-Parkside Foundation more than triple its assets. He also headed the effort of developing a complete set of new University publications complete with a ‘family look’ as part of a major marketing overhaul and image campaign for the campus.
Accomplishments as Department Chair and Director of Athletics at UW-Parkside include; developing the first major in the Department of HPEA – Sport and Fitness Management, two certificate programs – Sport Management and Wellness, and increased visibility of the athletics department through enhanced budgets, facilities, and staffing. The UWP Athletics program grew through his establishment of the Corporate and Business Partners program, which increased to more than 50 sponsorships and the Ranger Athletic Club with over 250 individual members. Previous to coming to UW-Parkside, Klaver spent fourteen years on the faculty and administration at Wayne State College. He is a tenured faculty member at UW-Parkside as was his status at Wayne State College.
Klaver earned his doctorate in Educational Administration from the University of Northern Colorado in 1994 and received the prestigious Graduate Dean’s Citation for Excellence for his dissertation on “Transformative Leadership”. He holds both Bachelor and Master’s Degrees in Education from Wayne State College, and received the Outstanding Alumnus Award from the School of Natural and Social Sciences in 2007. Klaver is a Trustee on the Wayne State Foundation Board. He is also a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International.
Klaver, 52, serves on numerous boards and community organizations including; the Bank of Elmwood, Rotary Club of Kenosha West (Past President), United Way of Kenosha County (Current President), Outstanding Kenoshan of the Year Committee (Chair), Education Foundation of Kenosha (Past President), Biotechnology Alliance Grant Selection Committee, Medical College of Wisconsin - North Central Association Higher Learning Commission site review team, Milwaukee 7 – BizStarts Economic Development Group, Kenosha County Economic Development Task Force, Southeast Wisconsin Regional Transit Board, and the Economic Development Plan Committee of the Racine County Economic Development Commission. He enjoys the outdoors - particularly fishing, sports, reading, cooking, and music. Klaver is the proud father of Jacey (24, recent graduate [DPT] of the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha) and Easton (11, soon the be a 6th grader at Bullen Middle School in Kenosha).
