Trinity Seeks New Dean of Faculty

During the 1999-2000 academic year, the College has been engaged in an elaborate process searching for a new Dean of Faculty. A committee consisting of five faculty members has been reviewing applications, interviewing candidates, and narrowing the field of prospective deans since last June.

The committee that is responsible for evaluating candidates is co-chaired by Engineering Professor David Ahlgren, and English Professor Jan Cohn. Other members of the committee include Professor of Religion Leslie Desmangles, Assistant Athletic Director Robin Sheppard, and Economics Professor William Butos. At the present time, the committee has narrowed the candidate pool of over seventy applicants to six finalists. The remaining candidates are currently being interviewed by the committee, which will eventually make a final recommendation to President Evan Dobelle. President Dobelle will then make the final decision concerning which candidate to hire for the Dean of Faculty position.

The hiring process began last April, when the five members of the committee were appointed by a faculty conference. The first meeting was held in late April, at which the committee decided on a course of action for the process of hiring a new Dean.

Ahlgren, who is co-chairman of the committee, described the early days of the process as a busy, but productive time for the committee. "We solicited opinions from the faculty, trying to gage what in their eyes would make a good Dean. On June 14, we met with various constituencies on campus, gathering thoughts and opinions." The committee also met with department heads, the administration, the Deans' staff, various program directors, chairs of standing committees on the faculty, the Athletic Department, and the College Vice-Presidents. In addition, they held two open faculty meetings to gather input on the search. Advertisements were also placed in the New York Times, and the Chronicle of Higher Education, to solicit applications from interested individuals around the country.

The committee began reading applications during the end of July, and hired the search firm A.T. Kerney to aid in the process of seeking out qualified applicants. "A.T. Kerney was very helpful in scouring the land for good applicants who are highly qualified in their fields," said Ahlgren. In addition to the work of the search firm, President Dobelle wrote letters to college presidents and deans across the country, looking for possible candidates.

This past September, the committee rated the applicants, and the pool was narrowed down to nine candidates.

The nine were interviewed at Bradley International Airport in October, and following that round of interviews, the candidate list was narrowed to six applicants.

So far, John Bassett, a Dean of Arts and Sciences at Case Western Reserve University, and Steven Baldwin, a Professor of Chemistry at Duke University remain after a second round of interviews.

The remaining four candidates, who will be interviewed later are Bonnie Steinbock, chair of the Department of Philosophy at S.U.N.Y. Albany, Gretchen Gerzina, Chair of the English Department at Vassar College, W. Miller Brown, current interim Dean of Faculty at Trinity, and Gregory Nobles, chairman of the School of History, Science, and Technology at Georgia Tech.

When these applicants visit the campus, they participate in a schedule of events that spans two days and includes meetings with the President, the academic departments, Student Services, faculty, the Dean's staff, and others.

The field of six candidates, will be limited further by the committee.

Ahlgren is unsure of the number of candidates the committee will next present to President Dobelle, who will research the finalists, and who will make a decision concerning which candidate to offer the position.

When asked about the responsibility that his committee faces, Professor Ahlgren, stated "The position of Dean of Faculty is extremely important on campus.

The search has been challenging, we've had dozens of meetings, and have worked hard. But on the other hand, the search is a big responsibility on our part."

Ahlgren states that the Dean of Faculty acts as an important advocate for the faculty, and because he or she is the faculty leader, the Dean is an academic leader for the students as well. The Dean of Faculty is also the second highest ranked officer at Trinity.

The committee hopes to give a recommendation list of final candidates to President Dobelle before winter break.

The new Dean of Faculty is slated to commence work at the beginning of the 2000-01 academic year.