May 20, 2013: An Update on the CLA Leadership Transition

Dear Colleagues,

I write to update you on the leadership transition in the College of Liberal Arts. As you know, we are undertaking a national search for a new dean, following Dean James Parente's decision to step down at the end of June. With input from the CLA community, I have convened a search committee to be chaired by Tom Fisher, dean of the College of Design. The 20-member committee met last week to receive its charge and to discuss the position and search process. Dean Fisher also launched a series of listening sessions with various CLA and campus communities.

As this search is under way, I am delighted to announce that Raymond "Bud" Duvall, Morse-Alumni Distinguished Teaching Professor of Political Science, has agreed to serve as interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts from July 1 until a new permanent dean is in place. Many of you know Professor Duvall, both for his highly regarded scholarship in international relations theory and for his well-respected contributions as an academic leader, including service as chair of the political science department since 2007.

I am confident that Professor Duvall will provide strong leadership that will serve the college well during this critical transition. Our largest college, the College of Liberal Arts is central to our academic mission. The University of Minnesota's excellence as a public land-grant research university depends crucially on the excellence of CLA, which educates nearly 15,000 undergraduates each year--half of all the students on the Twin Cities campus--and which is the home of a range of highly ranked graduate programs.

I will continue to provide progress reports on the search to the CLA community, with occasional updates to the broader University as well, as the search advances. If you have questions or suggestions, or you would like to share your thoughts about the position with the search committee, please contact committee chair Dean Tom Fisher, at [email protected], or Kate Stuckert in the Office of Human Resources at [email protected].

Please join me in thanking Bud Duvall for his willingness to serve and in again offering warm thanks to Jim Parente for his years of service as dean and his many contributions to the college and the University.

Sincerely,

Karen Hanson,
Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost

email sent May 20, 2013 to Twin Cities faculty and the Administrative Email Lists (AEL).