Tove Kvil (center), on a recent trip to UMUC’s Adelphi, Maryland, headquarters, visits with Nick Allen (left), UMUC provost and chief academic officer, and Janice Reilly (right), UMUC alumna, past president of the University’s Alumni Association, and longtime friend of Kvil's.

Featuring Alumni

Tove Kvil

By Alita Byrd
Special to FYI Online

Tove Kvil, adviser to the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research and a UMUC alumna, recently used her considerable experience and UMUC training to play a big role behind the scenes in organizing a major world conference. “Globalization and Higher Education: Implications for North-South Dialogue” was a cooperative effort between the Norwegian ministry Kvil advises and UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization), attended by stakeholders in higher education from all over the world.

“The participants . . . represented governments, NGOs, social partners, higher education institutions, research institutes, students, civil servants, researchers, politicians, and international organizations,” Kvil said, naming just a few of the conference attendees. The 200 participants came from Russia, Malta, Finland, the West Indies, Iran, Iceland, Saudi Arabia, India, Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Morocco, Canada, Chile, Mozambique, Dubai, Poland, Mauritania, Uruguay, the Phillipines, Lebanon, Nepal, Mauritania, Jordan, Argentina, China, and dozens of other countries.

Kvil was part of the internal steering group organizing the conference and was mainly responsible for its academic content. “The conference was a great success both academically and politically,” she said.

Kvil said she was particularly happy to see Nick Allen, UMUC’s provost and chief academic officer—whom she knows from her days at UMUC—among the conference participants.

Held for two days in Oslo at the end of May, the conference focused on the challenges institutions and national higher education systems are facing as a result of globalization. Participants talked about how their governments and higher education institutions could develop a common platform on policy guidelines, frameworks, and instruments for education. They talked about creating responsible partnerships, providing standards and models of virtual universities.

Kvil was well-placed to help plan such a global education conference. She earned a Master of General Administration from UMUC in 1995, focusing on human resources. She went to school in the evening with other students who were looking to boost their careers. “Actually, that made the studies possible for me, since I had two small sons—aged two and four—when we arrived in the United States,” Kvil said.

During her studies at UMUC stateside, Kvil struck a friendship—one that would last many years and many miles—with Janice Reilly, who would later become president of the University’s Alumni Association.

“We became friends because of our commitment to UMUC,” said Reilly. “Tove really enjoyed the UMUC campus and studying here. We still enjoy reminiscing about discussing our orals at the Burger King in the Montgomery Mall!”

Reilly and Kvil still correspond frequently via e-mail, and when Reilly planned to attend the UMUC commencement in Heidelberg, Germany, years ago, Kvil’s husband remarked, “If she’ll be in Germany, that’s our neighborhood. So tell her to stop by!”

Before coming to the United States to study at UMUC, Kvil had earned degrees from Oslo University College and the University of Oslo in her native Norway. She had also worked as a principal in a primary school. After studying at UMUC she went back to Norway and got another master’s degree in education at the University of Oslo and started doctoral studies at Stockholm University, the Institute of International Education. She is currently trying to finalize her PhD thesis.

At the same time, though, Kvil is putting all of her education and experience to good use in her work. In addition to the May 2003 UNESCO conference, the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research has contracted her to work as an education expert on the World Trade Organization negotiations on trade in services and an OECD (Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) conference on trade in educational services scheduled for the beginning of November 2003.

Somehow, Kvil also finds time to serve as a senior adviser at Oslo University College, one of her alma maters. She has some lofty goals for the position. She wants to boost internationalization in teacher education, increase student and teacher mobility, as well as professionalize and increase the college’s engagement in education and development internationally.

In all of it, Kvil thanks UMUC for the boost it gave her career, on a variety of levels.

“I believe that my degree has opened new doors to management positions, qualified me for my daily challenge leading schools with 500 pupils and 80 employees, and given me international experience,” Kvil said. “My master’s also helped me to be accepted in the PhD program at Stockholm University. When there are many applicants to attractive positions, I am visible in the ‘pile.’”

Kvil made many friends during her time at UMUC and said she returns to Maryland for visits whenever she can.

“I learned a new environment and academic culture,” Kvil said. “Most of the subjects were new to me and that kept me very busy working to get good results. I found my experiences with UMUC challenging, interesting, and inspiring.”