At issue: the credibility of a national recruitment while key decisions about budget and scope of responsibility haven't yet been made; unusually heavy faculty recruitment--34 searches this year alone--that will compete for the acting deans' and L&S faculty's time and energy; ongoing administrative reorganization that could be complicated or compromised by launching searches now for the divisional deans.
The three acting deans--Kern Holoman, Division of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies; Barbara Metcalf, Division of Social Sciences; and Peter Rock, Division of Mathematical and Physical Sciences--have been recommended to the Office of the President for appointment to terms ending June 30, 1998. The "acting" modifier would also be removed from their titles, Grey said.
"This change in title is intended to strengthen the deans' effectiveness in faculty recruitment and in the increasingly important area of development and fund-raising activities," he said.
The three deans are to submit plans for the long-term administration of collegewide functions, along with budget proposals for the divisions and for collegewide activities, by June 30.
The plans should be developed in appropriate consultation with the college's faculty and staff, Grey said, and address an earlier proposal for a fourth dean to administer collegewide functions. The three deans currently divide these broader tasks and rotate responsibility as "convening dean."
"My recent conversations with many members of the faculty and staff of the college make clear that there is widespread respect and appreciation for the hard work of the three acting deans and for the leadership they are providing," Grey said.
"There is also a broad and remarkably perceptive understanding of the complexity of the tasks still to be accomplished. Chancellor Vanderhoef and I intend to work closely with Deans Holoman, Metcalf and Rock in the coming months to ensure continuation of the remarkable progress that we have observed thus far."
