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Provost Russell Moore today announced he will appoint an interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences within the next several weeks and the position will report to him, alongside the three deans of division in the college. 

Russell Moore

“After a month of input from Arts and Sciences leadership, faculty, staff and shared governance, I am persuaded that while there may not be anything inherently wrong with the current leadership structure, the roles envisioned for the deans of division in the college reorganization process have not been achieved,” Moore said. “I will continue my discussions with Arts and Sciences Faculty Senate leadership, members of the college’s divisional councils and others to further define the role of the dean of the college relative to the deans of division. I plan to appoint an interim dean of the college within the next several weeks, who will serve in that interim capacity for up to two years.

“The interim appointee will be given a defined scope of objectives in order to provide stability to the college in this period of transition. These objectives include a commitment to transparency in budgetary and decision-making issues, the creation of a divisional resource allocation philosophy, engagement with shared governance and college staff, and a continued focus on and elevation of the importance of student success programming.”    

Moore said the interim period “will give us time to sharpen the focus of how the authority of the deans of division aligns with the authority of the dean of the college and how all four positions can work together for better results.” 

The announcement comes after a month of discussions with Arts and Sciences shared governance, the deans of division, and faculty, staff and students in the college through open forums following the resignation of Dean Glen Krutz announced on April 15. 

Moore said he heard in the open forums “a clear consensus that rotating the leadership of the college among the deans of division was not a desirable leadership structure” and that “what was clearly needed was more sharply defined leadership roles to more effectively manage the business of the college.” 

Moore said that the two-year interim period would “allow us the time needed to cement leadership structures and implement processes for how we do business” before seeking longer-term leadership of the college. 

“I want to thank the Arts and Sciences Faculty Senate and its chair Andy Cowell, the deans of division, associate and vice deans in the college, members of the divisional councils and the faculty and staff of Arts and Sciences, who have given me excellent feedback on what is needed administratively to succeed in carrying out the mission of our largest college,” Moore said.