Committee starts search for COAS dean

Provost and Executive Vice President Karen Hanson announced Friday that the IU administration has initiated a search for the next dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.

The chosen dean will take the place of Bennett I. Bertenthal, who resigned in March at
Hanson’s request.

His surprise resignation came as a result of management concerns.

Bertenthal is currently the Rudy Professor in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.

Bertenthal agreed to resign and returned to full-time work as a researcher and teacher, said Russell Hanson, professor and chairman of the Department of Political Science.

“Neither the mission of the College nor its centrality to the IU-Bloomington campus was in any way at issue in this matter,” Russel Hanson said in an e-mail.

When asked about the previous dean’s resignation, Hanson was unavailable for comment.

Since Bertenthal’s resignation, David Zaret, professor in the Department of Sociology, has been serving as temporary dean.

Russell Hanson will lead a search committee to find the new dean.

The committee will be composed of 18 different members that will include faculty, graduate students, staff and alumni representatives.

“We want an experienced leader with a vision for promoting extraordinary research and teaching in the arts and sciences, who will serve the needs of all students on campus, as well as our local, state and national communities,” Russell Hanson said in an e-mail.

“The search and screen committee will work diligently to identify candidates with the knowledge, experience and skill to strengthen the college and improve the reputation of the entire campus and University.”

The committee, along with an outside search firm, will identify, screen and interview potential candidates and is expected to provide a short list of names for Hanson by the end of the semester.

Russell Hanson said the committee will be conducting a broad search and is inviting IU faculty to apply well as those from other institutions in the United States and abroad.

“We expect to hire candidates with the best qualifications for the job, regardless of their current address,” he said.

Rick Van Kooten, member of the search committee and physics professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, said that when hired, a new dean will bring a different outlook to the College.

“I think a new dean will bring in a vision for improved courses, organizations and expanding research,” Kooten said.