The search is on for a nationally-recognized leader in the field of education to head the University of Wisconsin School of Education.
An all-campus email was sent last Wednesday announcing the search for a new dean and requesting nominations. Dean Julie Underwood announced her resignation in November after spending a decade heading the school. She will officially step down in August of 2015 to rejoin the faculty.
A 17-member committee chaired by David Kaplan, a professor of educational psychology, will conduct the nationwide search to fill Underwood’s place.
“We’re the #1 public School of Education in the U.S.,” Underwood said. “We’ve really developed leadership to change the world, [and] I hope we continue on that path.”
With Underwood’s leadership, the school saw structural and faculty changes, as well as investment in organizations such as the Wisconsin Center for Education Research, whose research expenditures have more than doubled, Underwood said.
Over the past 10 years, the School of Education has dedicated itself to new areas of research including neuroscience in education, increasing their focus on programs in English as a second language and issues of literacy, Underwood said. In addition, the school has taken on more diverse hires, she said. Under her direction, the school made several renovations including adding an art loft to the building, she said.
In terms of her legacy in the School of Education, “we’ve got lots of things to be proud of,” Underwood said.
Kaplan is optimistic about finding someone who is well-qualified and a highly notable scholar to succeed Underwood as dean, he said.
According to a UW statement, the screening committee will consist of faculty members such as associate professor of educational policy and analysis, John Diamond; assistant director of the Wisconsin’s Equity and Inclusion Laboratory, LaVar Charleston; and senior administrative program specialist in Division of Continuing Studies, Julie Klein.
“We’re really looking for a nationally recognized scholar in education who has a deep appreciation for the varieties of educational scholarship, and also someone who is committed to continuing the School of Education’s commitment to the Wisconsin Idea,” Kaplan said. “The advertisement for the position is going far and wide and it could yield internal candidates as well as external candidates — it’s wide open.”
The new dean will be tasked with ensuring that the level of scholarship at the School of Education remains high.
“I think the future is quite bright, especially if we’re able to maintain the kind of scholarship that we do across the school, and maintain its national reputation,” Kaplan said.
Kaplan said the school hopes the new dean will continue to develop the initiatives already in place at the school as well as increase innovation and bring new ideas to the table.
“We’re excited about the future, we’re excited about getting a really well-qualified, highly visible scholar as dean,” Kaplan said. “I think it’s going to be really good.”
