Interim Kelley dean announced

The Kelley School of Business will have a new man sitting in the office with "Dean" labeled on the front door. \nDaniel Smith, currently the Clare W. Barker chair in marketing and an associate dean of academics at the business school, was named interim dean Thursday by IU-Purdue University Indianapolis Chancellor Charles Bantz, to whom the School of Business reports. \nSmith said he is honored to be asked to serve as interim dean of an institution with outstanding students, highly dedicated faculty, strong external partnerships and a positive "can do" culture that fosters excellence in both research and teaching. \n"I believe I have the ability to get beyond surface-level symptoms, identify critical underlying issues and bring people together around common goals," Smith said. "I have a good sense of vision and can establish clear priorities ... I am a good listener and can see multiple sides of issues."\nSmith will take the reins from current IU Kelley School Dean Dan Dalton, who served as the school's dean since 1997. Dalton resigned because of a desire to return to a teaching capacity. \n"I have served in the second-best position within the Kelley school now for eight years," Dalton told the Indiana Daily Student in a Jan. 21 article. "Now I look forward to be rejoining the best position in the school as a professor. I haven't been in the classroom for eight years, and that's entirely too long." \nBantz received input from more than 30 faculty and staff members and spoke to a dozen people from both the IUPUI and Bloomington campuses. \nSmith has been a part of the Kelley faculty since 1998, with focuses in brand management and marketing strategy, and has been published in scholarly journals. Smith was the chair of the MBA Program from 1998 to 2001.\nIU-Bloomington Interim Chancellor Ken Gros Louis said Smith's current experience and the confidence his colleagues have in him are crucial to his success.\n"I know that he was the first choice of many faculty and his current experience as associate dean makes him well-suited to be the acting dean," Gros Louis said.\nSmith will be the interim dean of the Kelley School until the summer of 2005 or until the position is filled, Bantz said.\nSmith said he always tries to deal with people in an encouraging yet candid and honest fashion.\n"I am very comfortable working with a wide range of people, including faculty, business executives, students, parents and alumni," he said. "Above all, I care deeply about the well-being of the Kelley School and will serve with passion, dedication and integrity."\n-- Contact senior writer Mike Malik at mjmalik@indiana.edu.