4 colleges look to fill dean vacancies
With two acting deanships ending and two deans retiring this year, four colleges are searching to fill these positions. Lonnie King, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, and Marilyn Rothert, dean of the College of Nursing, plan to retire at the end of June, but could stay longer depending on when the new deans take office. Rothert has served a total of 13 years as dean, including two years as acting dean. "It's been a terrific journey, with times that are challenging, but overall an excellent experience," Rothert said. The top four College of Nursing candidates will visit campus starting next week, said Barbara Given, a nursing professor and the chairperson of the college's search committee. "We really tried to look at whether or not they could be a strong leader, but specifically whether they could have the ability to lead the College of Nursing into the next decade — given the complexity of the university ? and the multiple education and research programs we have," she said. The committee hopes to make its recommendations to Provost Kim Wilcox by the beginning of March, Given said. King has served as dean for 10 years in the College of Veterinary Medicine and plans to pursue other interests upon his retirement, he said. The search for the college's new dean is still in its early stages, said Willie Reed, chairman of the Department of Pathobiology and Diagnostic Investigation and chairman of the college's search committee. The committee is still contacting potential candidates and will eventually invite them to campus for an interview, he said. "We would like to have a candidate identified by the end of the semester," Reed said. Satish Udpa, of the College of Engineering, and Patrick McConeghy, of the College of Arts & Letters, will conclude their acting deanships once permanent deans are selected and take office. The search committee for the College of Engineering is reviewing applications, and candidates should be interviewed on campus in late April, said Percy Pierre, professor of electrical and computer engineering and the search committee's chairman. "We'll be able to better evaluate them as candidates after we visit with them," Pierre said. Udpa was out of town and could not be reached for comment Wednesday. After about two years as acting dean in Arts & Letters, McConeghy said he plans to return to teaching German full-time in the college. "Administrative positions are usually quite rewarding — primarily, being able to work toward helping students get a better education at MSU and helping faculty with their teaching (and) research projects," McConeghy said. The college's committee also is in the process of gathering applicants and hopes to conduct interviews on campus later this semester, said Ellen Pollak, professor of English and co-chairwoman of the search committee. "We would be happy if someone could begin next fall, but we'll work with whoever the candidate is to make that possible," Pollak said. Once each committee decides on a candidate, they will make a recommendation to Wilcox, who makes the final decision, said Bob Banks, assistant provost and vice president for academic human resources. Wilcox will negotiate with each of the candidates as to their specific starting date, but MSU officials would like the new deans to take office by the fall semester, he said. "We've been successful so far, and I have every sense that we'll be successful in the rest of the positions," Banks said.