This spring, Dr. Lance Renner joined Missouri State as the director of the Testing Center. We recently caught up with Renner to learn about what drew him to this role and why you’ll always find his door open.

Q&A

Academic Expressions: Tell us about your path to Missouri State.
Lance Renner: I’m a native Springfieldian. I earned my bachelor’s and MBA from Drury and got a doctorate from Saint Louis University. I’ve also been a Springfield business owner; right after college, I owned my own restaurant for five years. After I sold it, I spent a year as a substitute teacher for Springfield Public Schools. I loved it, and then, I spent 25 years at Ozarks Tech, which I also loved. I retired from there as dean of general education and business.

AE: So, you’ve been an entrepreneur, a higher-ed administrator, and you have teaching experience. What drew you to this role at the Testing Center?
LR: As soon as I saw the job posting, I sensed there was real possibility. I reached out to a few people I know here, and they all said, “Yes, this role would offer you opportunities to do interesting, important things.”

AE: What are some of those things?
LR: There are two big categories for what we do at the Testing Center. First, we offer student services. One example is our collaboration with the Disability Resource Center to make sure students have appropriate accommodations. That piece of it really appeals to me — supporting our students as they work toward their goals. We also provide testing services for the community, such as specific job certifications. These generate revenue, and my business side is excited about the chance to be very strategic with that revenue-generating segment.

AE: Tell us more about that.
LR: For one thing, we’re heightening the importance of collecting data. Holly Kouns [coordinator of public services for Meyer Library], served as interim director of the Testing Center this past year, and she’s been a fantastic partner. I can go look at when we administered certain tests over the last 12 months, and that helps us forecast staffing. We can also look at which exams we’re administering most often, which helps us use our resources effectively.

AE: How can faculty and staff collaborate with the Testing Center?
LR: We’re very open to potential collaborations. This summer, we’re working with SOAR to offer the math placement exam. Another example happened recently when a faculty member in one of our health care programs reached out about the certification exam her students must take to enter their profession. They had to go elsewhere to take that exam, and now, we’re going to start offering it here. That’s a better experience for our students.

AE: So, people are encouraged to reach out.
LR: We have an open-door policy, and I mean it literally. Just the other day, a professor stopped in, simply because my office door was open. We had a great conversation! And I will always have an open door, even when people are right outside my office, working in the library. Sure, in the height of the semester, it can get a little noisy, but it doesn’t bother me.

AE: You like being part of it.
LR: Yes, 100%.