The University of Massachusetts has invited two finalists for the position of senior vice chancellor of academic affairs and provost to campus next week to participate in public forums for the campus community.
John Hopkins Dean Katherine Newman and Purdue University Dean Jeffrey Roberts were both named finalists for the position, which opened in October when James Staros announced he would resign at the end of the academic year.
Newman has been dean of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences at John Hopkins since 2010, where she also serves as a professor of sociology. She previously served as the director of the Princeton Institute for International and Regional Studies. Newman also served as the Malcolm Stevenson Forbes 1941 Professor of Sociology and Public Affairs at Princeton University. She holds a doctorate in anthropology from the University of California Berkeley and she received her bachelor’s degree in philosophy and sociology from the University of California San Diego.
Roberts has been dean of the College of Science at Purdue University for almost five years. He is also a professor of chemistry at Purdue. Roberts was previously the head of the chemistry department and a Distinguished McKnight University Professor at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities from 2005 to 2009. He holds a doctorate in chemistry from Harvard University and a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of California Berkeley.
Roberts will be at a public forum on Tuesday, April 1 at 2:15 p.m. in Campus Center 174-76. Newman‘s public forum is Wednesday, April 2 at 2:30 p.m. in Campus Center 168C.
A search committee appointed by UMass Chancellor Kumble Subbaswamy chose Newman and Roberts from a national search pool. Among the members of the committee were Tim Anderson, dean of the college of engineering; Craig Bidiman, representative from the Graduate Student Senate; Joye Bowman, chair of the history department; Lori Clarke, chair of the school of computer science; Diego Fellows and Charlotte Kelly, Student Government Association representatives; Patty Freedson, chair of the kinesiology department; Enku Gelaye, interim vice chancellor for student affairs and campus life; Michael Malone, vice chancellor for research and development; Andrew Mangels, director of finance and budget; Christine McCormick, dean of the college of education; and Susan Pearson, associate chancellor. Julie Hayes, dean of the college of humanities and fine arts, served as the committee chair.
The senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and provost is the top academic officer at UMass, reporting directly to the chancellor and serving in the chancellor’s place when Subbaswamy is unavailable. The senior vice chancellor and provost oversees all of the campus’s schools and colleges, including the graduate school and the Commonwealth Honors College.
A hiring decision is expected in the coming weeks, shortly after the public forums.
