After 25 memorable years of being a Buckeye, Linda Harlow, the associate provost of the University Honors and Scholars Center, has announced her retirement.
“I’ve absolutely loved those 25 years and the university. I love working with the faculty, the students and the French department,” Harlow said. “I’m going to miss everybody.”
During her time at OSU, Harlow has held various positions. She was the director of the Undergraduate French Language Program, the associate dean of Curriculum and Instruction in the College of Humanities and the faculty supervisor of the Arts and Sciences Curriculum Office.
Since 2002, when Harlow became director of the Honors and Scholars Center, the programs have undergone numerous changes, such as uniform minimum standards for maintaining honors status and the establishment of student and faculty advisory boards for the assessment of the programs.
The most significant change that Harlow oversaw was the establishment of the minimum standards, she said. The standards set specific requirements that students have to maintain to keep their honors status.
“We’ve been able to raise the level of work that honors students do,” Harlow said. “They know when we recruit them what’s going to be expected and the things they have to do to earn their share of the benefits.”
After retirement, Harlow plans to move to North Carolina with her husband and golden retrievers. She plans to continue teaching part-time and become involved in a large, active service community, Harlow said.
Harlow earned a doctorate in foreign language, a master’s degree in teaching French and a bachelor’s degree in French and Spanish education. She also co-authored multiple editions of the college-level French textbook, “Bravo!”.
Her favorite thing about OSU is the size of the university and all the opportunities it presents, she said.
After years of recruiting hundreds of OSU’s top students, she leaves students with the following advice: “Just go out and collect as many experiences as you can. You never know how it will impact your future, but be open to every opportunity out there. Take advantage of them, and everything will work out at the end.”