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Planning Consultants

The University has retained the firm of Anthony Knerr & Associates (www.aknerr.com) to provide consulting assistance for development of a strategic plan. Founded in 1990, the firm has established a notable record of assisting nonprofit institutions in the U.S. and Europe solve complex strategic issues. The firm’s clients include the following universities: Aberdeen (Scotland), Cambridge (UK), Columbia, CUNY, MIT, NYU, Oxford (UK), Pace, Polytechnic, Princeton, Southern Methodist, and Yale.

Members of the AKA project team include:

Scope of Engagement
The firm’s role is to advise and assist in ensuring that the University-wide planning process is well-designed, well-focused and well-developed as well as provide advice and assistance, as requested, to deans and the academic leadership of the University’s various schools concerning their planning processes.  In particular, the consultants will:

  • Facilitate or attend some meetings of the University Planning Steering Committee, under whose auspices the University strategic plan is being developed

  • Facilitate or attend some meetings of the Working Group, a sub-group of the Steering Committee, to which has been delegated the day-to-day preparation of the University strategic plan

  • Meet with the deans and academic leadership of each school to discuss and review their school’s planning process; facilitate at least the initial planning session for each of the schools; possibly attend or facilitate additional planning sessions for selected schools; and provide some on-going counsel to the deans and academic leadership of the schools on the preparation of their strategic plans as may be appropriate and helpful 

  • Prepare or suggest materials and resources that would be useful in both the University and school planning processes (including, for instance, readings, questionnaires, templates, external experts and the like); assist in identifying, gathering, analyzing and summarizing information gathered and generated during the University and school planning processes; and evaluate the quality and relevance of this information as the planning processes proceed

  • Assist in preparing some draft documents relevant to the University and school planning processes, as appropriate; and review and comment upon drafts of both University and school strategic plans as they are prepared by the University and the schools

  • Assist in ensuring congruence between the University and school planning processes from the get-go, so that expectations, schedules and deliverables are appropriately inter-related and relevant

  • Consult with University officers and staff and school staff and faculty members on specific strategic planning issues and the planning processes themselves, with particular attention to such matters as planning schedule(s); identification and analysis of key strategic issues; involvement of the larger University and school communities in the planning processes; grounding of the University and school plans in robust financial planning and analysis; relating the plans to an anticipated major development campaign; and informing and involving the Board in the evolving University planning process

  • Advise and provide some input to Issue Task Forces that will be appointed to address specific topics that are critical to developing the University plan but transcend any one academic or administrative unit
  • Serve, in general, as a resource on planning and related issues to the Steering Committee and the planning leadership of the schools throughout the planning process.

Project Team Biographical Sketches

Anthony Knerr, Managing Director of the firm, was earlier Executive Vice President for Finance and Treasurer of Columbia University and Vice Chancellor for Budget and Planning of the City University of New York.  He was previously Special Assistant for Budget and Planning to the Acting President of Yale University; an Associate with the consulting firm of Booz, Allen & Hamilton; a Program Officer with the International Exchange Program; a Teaching Associate at Indiana University; and a Teacher at Milton Academy.
Dr. Knerr has taught English Literature at Columbia College, Public Policy and Nonprofit Management at Columbia University Graduate School of Business, English Literature at Indiana University, Philosophy at Yale University and Public Policy at the New School.  He has written and published widely on strategy, non-profit organizations, public policy, higher education and literature.

Dr. Knerr is currently President Emeritus of the Caribbean Conservation Corporation; President Emeritus of United Neighborhood Houses of New York City; Vice Chairman of Humanity in Action; Treasurer of Words Without Borders; and a board member of the Keats-Shelley Association and New York Society Library.  He is also a Director of the Delaware Group of Mutual Funds and a member of the Mutual Fund Directors Education Council.  He has previously served on numerous other nonprofit and corporate boards.  He is a member of the Foreign Policy Association, New York Economic Club and Phi Beta Kappa.

He received his B.A. magna cum laude in mathematics and philosophy from Yale University; M.A. cum laude in English literature from Yale University; and Ph.D. in English literature from New York University.

Peter McE. Buchanan is President Emeritus of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), in which role he directed the training of institutions in the fields of fundraising, marketing, communications and alumni relations.  He has consulted widely with leading universities on issues of strategy, fundraising, capital campaigns, marketing and alumni relations.
Dr. Buchanan was previously Vice President of Development and Alumni Relations at Columbia University, where he led two major fund-raising campaigns, one of which was for a billion dollar program, and Vice President for Planning and Resources at Wellesley College, where he led a major fund-raising campaign.

He is a past member of the governing boards of CASE, University Council of Cornell University, Dana Hall School, Episcopal Divinity School, Independent Sector and the Wellesley College Center for Research on Women.  He also chaired the Washington Higher Education Secretariat’s Multiple Employer Trust Board (MET), providing comprehensive medical insurance for participating associations’ members.  He is currently a Director of the Curry School of Education Foundation Board at the University of Virginia and a Trustee of the Westminster Canterbury of the Blue Ridge Foundation in Charlottesville, Virginia.  He is the 2007 recipient of the Frank L. Ashmore Award for Service to CASE and to the Advancement Profession.

Dr. Buchanan received his B.A. in psychology from Cornell University; his M.B.A. in marketing from Columbia University; and his Ed.D. in higher education from Columbia University.

John Braunstein is a project consultant of the firm and has extensive experience in higher education strategy, organization, management, enrollment and planning. 

He was earlier a Senior Associate in the Higher Education Consulting Group of Coopers & Lybrand, a Senior Consultant in Higher Education at KPMG Peat Marwick and a Principal in the higher education strategy and financial analysis practice of The Stillwater Group.  His clients in these positions included Columbia University, Educational Testing Service, University of Maryland System, University of Missouri, MIT, New York University Stern School of Business, University of Chicago Law School, University of Pennsylvania and Yale University.

He has also served as Associate Provost for Enrollment and Planning at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion; Interim Associate Provost for Enrollment Management and Dean of Admission at Franklin and Marshall College; Vice Provost for Enrollment Management at Iona College; Associate Director of Admission at Oberlin College; and Assistant Director of Admission at Brown University. He has written and spoken widely on higher education strategy, planning, financing and athletics.

He received his B.A. degree in semiotics from Brown University and his M.B.A. in management of organizations and marketing from Columbia University.  He also participated in the Management Develop Program of the Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Jay Morley served as President of the National Association of College and University Business Officers (NACUBO) in which position he spearheaded efforts related to organizational effectiveness and strategy, college costs, total quality improvement, tax reporting requirements and institutional student aid.  He has consulted, written and spoken widely on higher education strategy, organization, management and finance. 

Mr. Morley was previously Senior Vice President and Vice President and Treasurer at Cornell University.  He also served as Vice President at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Rider College.  He began his career in higher education as Comptroller of Syracuse University and was earlier a management consultant at Ernst and Ernst in New York.  Mr. Morley was on active duty in the United States Marine Corps and holds the rank of colonel, retired in the USMC Reserve. 
He served on the American Council of Education Board and chaired the Board of the Emma Willard School and has served on the Board of the National Grange Mutual Insurance Company, chairing the Audit Committee.  He has served on and chaired or been president of several other boards, including the United Educators Risk Retention Group; the Tompkins County Foundation; Citizens Savings Bank; School, College, and University Underwriters, Limited (SCUUL); and Challenge Industries.  He is the 1993 recipient of the Distinguished Business Officer Award, NACUBO’s highest honor. 

Mr. Morley received his M.S. in accounting from Syracuse University and his B.S. in mechanical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic University. 

Lynn M. Taussig, M.D., a project consultant of Anthony Knerr & Associates, served as President/CEO of National Jewish Medical and Research Center in Denver for nearly 12½ years before his retirement in January 2006. 

He is presently a Special Advisor to the Provost (for the Life Sciences) at the University of Denver and a consultant to National Jewish Medical and Research Center.  He serves as Chair of the Steering Committee for the National Institutes of Health’s Childhood Asthma Research and Education (CARE) Network.  He was earlier Professor and Chair of the Department of Pediatrics and Director of the Steele Children’s Research Center at the University of Arizona Health Sciences Center.  He was on the faculty of the University of Arizona for 19½ years and began the Pediatric Pulmonary Section there. 

In 1980, Dr. Taussig initiated the Tucson Children’s Respiratory Study, a major longitudinal study of the risk factors for asthma; the study continues today.  He is the author of more than 165 scientific publications and six books and monographs and is a recipient of numerous honors and awards, including the Alumni Achievement Award from Washington University School of Medicine, the Distinguished Achievement Award from the American Thoracic Society and the Kendig Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics. 

Dr. Taussig received his B.S. from Harvard University and his M.D. from Washington University School of Medicine.

Brigette Treumann, a project consultant of Anthony Knerr & Associates, has consulted widely with nonprofit organizations in the United States and Europe on issues of strategy, development and organization design.

She was earlier Associate Director for Development at University of Chicago, Director of Development of George Washington University Law School and Associate Vice President for Development at George Washington University.

Dr. Treumann is President of Human Opportunities Trust (HOT), an organization she founded to provide assistance to SMEs in the Middle East.  She is also a member of the Board of Directors of The Civil War Landscapes Association; the Visiting Committee to the University of Chicago Divinity School; the Board of Governors of The American Research Center in Egypt; and the Board of Directors of the Aurea Performance Ensemble.

She received her B.A. in library sciences from the Library School of the Bavarian State Library, Munich, and her M.A. and Ph.D. in Near Eastern languages and civilizations from the University of Chicago.