Lara Luetkehans
Hometown
Chicago
Education
Loyola University Chicago (Philosophy), Dominican University (Master of Library and Information Science), University of Georgia (PhD Instructional Technology)
Family
Husband, Peter; children, Joe, Will, and TK
Hobbies
Cooking. Food is a big part of my Italian heritage. I’ve been a vegetarian for about 30 years, and I enjoy experimenting and recreating family recipes with plant-based alternatives. I also have recently gotten a travel bug. I enjoy planning family vacations to new places for us to explore.
Favorite place to eat in Indiana
Nap’s/Josephine’s. They have the best pizza oven and outdoor dining in Indiana. Although Teerak Thai is right up there, so fresh and flavorful.
Favorite TV show
Anything with unsolved mysteries or true crime. I’m more of a movie person. My favorite movie at the moment is the new musical version of The Color Purple—it’s spectacular!
Person who has the biggest influence on you
It is hard to name just one; I’ve been fortunate to have been mentored by so many amazing people. However, the person that comes to the top of my mind is my mother-in-law. She modeled for me how to be a loving and present mother without losing a sense of who she was as an individual, while continuing to pursue her professional aspirations. She helped me to see how I could keep working at realizing all of my dreams and still have work/life balance.
Lara Luetkehans is the daughter of Italian American immigrants who came to our country to pursue the American dream. They believed that a college education was the greatest gift they could give their children to prepare them for life—and by working long hours at their small business and saving every penny possible, they made it possible for Luetkehans and her siblings.
She began her career as an academic librarian before moving on to teaching, always drawn to positions that would allow her to create for others the transformational learning opportunity she had as an undergraduate.
“It’s what drives me now,” she said. “Having to navigate college life taught me so much—how to think critically, to write, to find my voice, to develop resilience and confidence. It is probably why I never left higher education. I knew as an undergraduate I was going to work at a college or university for my career, I just didn’t know in what capacity.”
Luetkehans came to IUP in 2013 as the dean of the College of Education and Educational Technology (now the College of Education and Communications). Prior to IUP, she was a professor and chair of the Department of Educational Technology, Research, and Assessment at Northern Illinois University. She was named interim provost in July 2021 and, following a national search, was selected for the permanent role of provost and vice president for Academic Affairs in April 2022.
Get to know more about Lara Luetkehans in this Q&A.
When you were a kid, what did you want to be when you grew up?
I wanted to be so many things—a forensic pathologist, a lawyer, a teacher, a writer. When I went to college, I started as a physics major and explored many different disciplines. I ended up pursuing philosophy because I found it so intellectually stimulating. Before my first political philosophy class, I had never been given the opportunity to learn and question the foundations of government. In an epistemology course, I began questioning our ways of knowing as human beings. It was through my study of the humanities that I built confidence as a communicator and problem-solver.
In a nutshell, what does a Provost do?
Provosts are the chief academic officers of the university. I consider this role as my responsibility to ensure that students have the highest quality academic experience possible. So, to make this happen, I am responsible for making sure that IUP has exceptional faculty, a strong curriculum, and the resources students need to help them meet their goals. I am also responsible for working with all other facets of the university to make sure that our students’ experience is one that prepares them not just for their first, or subsequent jobs, but for success in life.
What does a “normal day” look like for you?
MEETINGS! I spend a lot of time collaborating with others to ensure they have what they need to meet their objectives, so meetings are important. I spend most days working with other administrators, members of the faculty, and staff colleagues, but I also work closely with a number of community partners. The favorite parts of my day are when I get to interact directly with IUP students. I love to hear what they are working on, what they are accomplishing, and ways that I can help get them where they want to be.
What makes a day a good day for you?
A good day is when I feel like I made someone’s life or work just a little bit better. Maybe I helped a colleague figure something out, made some progress on an IUP initiative, or solved a problem for a student.
Generally speaking, what should students do if they need help?
Students, this is directly to you: Please, please, please ask.
Way too often students tell us they are afraid to ask for help because they don’t think that what they are asking is something we can help them with, or they think their question will make them “look stupid,” or that they are embarrassed to ask something that they think they should know. No one comes to IUP knowing everything, and it’s very unlikely (probably impossible!) that a question a student asks hasn’t been asked before—or won’t be asked again.
IUP is a learning community, and that means helping you learn to be successful, both in and outside the classroom. Everything here exists to support you and to help you define and to meet your goals. Ask! There truly is no “dumb question.”
I was that first-generation student who needed a navigator, that “explorer” who needed a mentor, so I had many questions. I found that in my college experience, and I want to ensure that every student who comes to IUP finds for themselves what drives them, and that includes asking questions—and asking for help, for both the big things and the little things.
What advice would you give students to ensure they succeed at IUP?
Open yourself up to as many experiences as possible. Try new things even if it makes you uncomfortable. The growth and satisfaction that come from working through change, ambiguity, and unfamiliar situations will make all the difference as you create your future.
My favorite quote is, “It is not what happens to you, but how you react to it, that matters.”
What’s the best advice anyone has ever given you?
A previous mentor told me, again and again: “You can only control your controllables.” I took that to mean that if I did not agree with something, I should work to change it. But if I could not change it, then I needed to let it go or change my thinking. In my work, I find that I must remind myself of that regularly. I put my efforts into initiatives where I can make a difference.