By SUSAN JONES
Add the School of Education to the summer of transition at Pitt.
Valerie Kinloch, who has been dean of the school since July 2017, will become president of Johnson C. Smith University in Charlotte, N.C., effective Aug. 1, Provost Ann Cudd announced on June 21.
Kinloch, a native of Charleston, S.C., holds a bachelor’s degree in English and literature from Johnson C. Smith University and is on its Board of Trustees.
“It’s a dream come true to be invited to lead one of the finest historically black colleges and universities in America — and at the same time come home,” Kinloch said in an announcement from JCSU naming her its 15th president. “My years at JCSU were some of the best of my life. This university set me on course to grow beyond anything I could imagine, so it is incredibly gratifying to return and give back to the institution that helped make me who I am.”
Provost Cudd, who herself is leaving Pitt at the end of June, said in her announcement that an interim dean would be named in the coming weeks. Cudd praised Kinloch’s work in “developing a new strategic plan and structure for the School of Education, including a new vision for its programming. … As well, she fortified the school’s commitment to equity and justice, diversity and inclusion, community engagement, university culture, and alumni involvement.”
Kinloch came to Pitt from Ohio State University’s College of Education and Human Ecology and its Department of Teaching and Learning, where she was a professor, associate chair of the department, and associate dean of the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement. She also has taught at Columbia University’s Teachers College and the University of Houston-Downtown. She has a master’s in English/African American Literature and a doctorate in English, both from Wayne State University in Detroit. Her research, which focuses on the literacies of Black people in urban and rural contexts, examines equitable forms of teaching, learning and leading.
A year of transitions
In addition to getting a new chancellor, Joan Gabel, and an interim provost, Joe McCarthy, this summer, Kinloch’s departure will be the eighth dean transition since last summer. Three positions are currently filled with interim deans, with one search nearing its conclusion and two searches awaiting the arrival of Gabel in July.
School of Dental Medicine: Bernard Costello moved from dean to associate vice chancellor for the Office of Interdisciplinary Education, Health Sciences, in September 2022, and Marnie Oakley has been serving as interim dean since then. A search was launched in fall 2022 and an update this month by search committee chair Anthony Delitto, dean of the School of Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, said the committee had given its list of candidate recommendations to Anantha Shekhar, senior vice chancellor for health sciences, and campus visits are nearing completion.
Swanson School of Engineering: James Martin moved from dean to vice chancellor for STEM research and innovation in the Office of the Senior Vice Chancellor for Research in August 2022. Sanjeev Shroff, former chair of the Department of Bioengineering, has been serving as interim dean since then.
School of Law: Amy Wildermuth stepped down as dean in January. Professor Haider Ala Hamoudi has been serving as interim, but will leave this summer to become dean of the University of Cincinnati law school. Professor and former dean Mary Crossley will step in as interim in July.
Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences: Adam Leibovich, the Dietrich School’s associate dean for research and faculty development and professor of physics, was chosen in April to replace Kathleen Blee as dean of the Dietrich School of Arts & Sciences and the College of General Studies, effective July 1.
School of Nursing: Christine E. Kasper, former dean of the University of New Mexico’s College of Nursing, started in January as dean of Pitt Nursing, following Jacqueline Dunbar-Jacob, who stepped down last summer and will retire at the end of June.
Pitt Business: Gene Anderson, former dean of the Whitman School of Management at Syracuse University, took over as dean of the Katz Graduate School of Business and the College of Business Administration from Arjang Assad in August 2022.
School of Pharmacy: Amy Lynn Seybert moved from chair of the Department of Pharmacy and Therapeutics to dean of the School of Pharmacy in July 2022, following the retirement of Patricia Kroboth.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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