Law dean named interim provost

Lauren Robel, dean of IU’s Maurer School of Law, has been named interim provost for the Bloomington campus and succeeds current provost and executive vice president Karen Hanson.

On Tuesday, IU President Michael McRobbie announced his decision, which is subject to approval by IU’s Board of Trustees. The board will vote to make Robel’s appointment official at its next meeting Thursday and Friday, according to a press release.

Upon approval, Robel will take office Feb. 1, 2012, following Hanson’s departure to become senior vice president and provost at the University of Minnesota, her
alma mater.

“Lauren Robel is an outstanding scholar and leader with a demonstrated passion for Indiana University and its students,” McRobbie said in the release. “I am grateful that she has agreed to accept this important role while we conduct a search for a permanent successor to Karen Hanson, and have no doubt that she will do an outstanding job.”

Robel has served as an IU faculty member since 1985 and has been Maurer’s dean since 2003. She is an Auburn University alumna and a graduate of IU
Bloomington’s law school.
 
Mark Land, associate vice president for University communications, said this experience will help her in this position.

“It’s not like she’s walking in brand new and being asked to do this,” he said. “This is somebody who has been on this campus for 25 years. I’m sure there will be a little bit of a learning curve, but it’s nothing that Lauren won’t be able to handle nicely.”      
Land also said Robel has the necessary characteristics to step into this position, which makes her the logical choice.   
 
“She’s got a really good reputation for being passionate about students and academic issues,” Land said. “She’s a really nice choice from that perspective, to hold this down and to allow us to continue to do the work that office needs to do while we find a permanent successor.”    
 
Following this decision, the University will form a search committee to find and recommend a permanent provost to the president. A timetable for this search has not been set, according to the release.
 
As for now, Land said the University hopes to make the transition as seamless
as possible. 

“We’re not going to lose any momentum in terms of the academic affairs on the Bloomington campus,” he said. “Having somebody as talented and experienced as Lauren come in will allow us to continue with that work.”