Committee chosen to select new dean

Wednesday, January 13, 1999

Committee chosen to select new dean

SEARCH: Replacement process could take from nine months to two
years

By Dennis Lim

Daily Bruin Contributor

Executive Vice Chancellor Rory Hume has taken the first step in
the search for a dean of the Graduate School of Education and
Information Sciences (GSE&IS).

In December, he appointed a special search committee, headed by
Professor Antonio Luprieno, to fill the position left vacant by Ted
Mitchell, who left in September.

This committee will establish the criteria for choosing the new
dean and will evaluate applicants for the position. According to
Renee Dennis, spokesperson for the committee, the actual process
could take anywhere from nine months to two years.

Currently, the committee has met once since they were appointed
by Hume, Dennis said.

"There are a lot of variables that go into the search such as
the availability of the committee, the criteria they establish, and
other things that can’t be anticipated," Dennis said.

As part of the search for qualified candidates, the committee
has placed ads in various academic publications and distributed
applications for the position, which are due by the end of
February.

Harold Levine, the interim dean of GSE&IS who has served
since August, said the school has functioned well during this
transition.

"It has been a relatively painless transition from dean to
dean," said Levine, who has taught at GSE&IS since 1979, and
has also served as a department head.

"We knew (Mitchell) was going to quit for a while now, so we
have been prepared for this. It wasn’t a surprise to anyone,"
Levine said.

Levine declined to state whether he would apply for the
position, but said he would "consider all options at the
moment."

Mitchell agreed with Levine’s assessment of the school’s
performance during the transition, but said he hopes the new dean
will continue the progress made by the school in research under his
tenure.

"If I could tell the future dean one thing it would be to focus
on Los Angeles," said Mitchell, who now works for the J. Paul Getty
trust.

"The school is beginning to play a very important role in the
Los Angeles education system (and) even though it is a nationally
recognized school it needs to keep that trend going," he said.

"Los Angeles is one of the greatest metropolitan laboratories
for research, if we can help focus our faculty we can unite their
work and apply it to the Los Angeles Unified School District,"
Mitchell continued.

In particular, Mitchell said GSE&IS is poised to make
breakthroughs in areas exploring children’s learning abilities on
the Internet, education leadership programs and its school
management program for administration officials in primary and
secondary school.

Because of the private nature of the process, neither Hume nor
Luprieno would discuss the status or any results of the search.

The GSE&IS dean handles the school’s budget, communication
with the chancellor’s office and is responsible for the development
of the school as a whole.

Mitchell said he would miss his position as dean, but added the
new dean will inherit a great opportunity.

"It was the best job I ever had," Mitchell said.

"As the dean, you have the chance to work with an extraordinary
faculty and take part in research that really impacts people. The
new dean will truly be lucky."

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