The announcement of Sarah Mangelsdorf as Weinberg’s next dean capped an eight-month search for a leader of the school’s 4,000 undergraduates, some of whom said Monday that they hope she will be more visible in student life.
Mangelsdorf, who is currently the dean of the liberal-arts college at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, will take the reins of Weinberg this August. In a statement, she called her appointment a “tremendous honor.”
“I look forward to working with Provost Linzer and with the faculty, students and alumni of Weinberg College,” she said.
The previous dean of Weinberg, Daniel Linzer, left the post in 2007 to become provost. Since then, Aldon Morris has served as interim dean.
Students had varying reactions to the news on Monday. Weinberg junior Thu Cung said that she did not expect much from the new dean and that she had very little interaction with Weinberg deans in the past.
“It’s probably my fault,” Cung said. “I’ve received invitations to dean events.” But she said that the dean “could be a more prominent figure, just present at events where more students are.”
Others in Weinberg also said they wanted Mangelsdorf to be more involved with students.
“I would like to see more interaction and listening to everyone’s wishes,” said Weinberg freshman Katharine Nasielski.
Weinberg junior Vince Colletti heard Nasielski’s comment from a nearby armchair and responded.
“Other people take care of your issues first,” he said, regarding relations between the dean and students. Colletti attributed the lack of interaction to Weinberg’s size and said, “I expect everything to stay the same.”
The search for a dean began with a committee that worked to place advertisements and have the “faculty throughout the college develop contacts with people,” Linzer said. Applicants were collected at the start of 2008, and interviews began Winter Quarter, continuing into the spring.
“There was interest in a number of people,” Linzer said. “But there was a lot of enthusiasm for Sarah Mangelsdorf.”
Mangelsdorf joined the psychology department at the University of Illinois in 1991, and became the first female dean of the university’s liberal-arts college in 2004.
Linzer said the search took as long as he had expected.
“It doesn’t happen overnight. It’s on the same timeline as the faculty hiring plan,” he said. The eight-month process was necessary because the dean has numerous responsibilities, he added.
“There are 25 departments, ranging from the visual arts to physics. You have to find someone who can communicate to other fields,” Linzer said.
Despite the challenges, Linzer said the response to Mangelsdorf’s appointment have been positive so far.
“I’ve received e-mails from lots of people saying, ‘Great choice,’” he said.