The College of Arts and Science has reorganized the dean鈥檚 office and welcomed several new faculty members to the leadership team, including , who will serve as senior associate dean of academic affairs.
The changes were driven by the college鈥檚 continued focus on undergraduate education. Since early 2022, the College of Arts and Science has been developing a new general education curriculum, the , which will be introduced to students in fall 2025. The new dean鈥檚 office structure positions the college to support students and faculty as the new curriculum comes to life.听
鈥淭his was an opportune time for us to rethink the structure and division of responsibilities in the dean鈥檚 office,鈥� said , Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean of the College of Arts and Science. 鈥淲e have been deeply exploring how we can best deliver a first-rate undergraduate education across the arts and sciences, and these changes are part of that effort, along with the launch of the new A&S College Core. This also was an opportunity to align our leadership titles with those used across the university.鈥�听
One significant change was the reconfiguration of the senior associate dean of academic affairs role, assumed by Allison Schachter, professor of Jewish studies and professor of English. The position now combines strategic leadership for undergraduate academics with management of the day-to-day operations of undergraduate education, which are housed in the Office of Undergraduate Education and the A&S College Core Office. In her new role, Schachter provides guidance for the college鈥檚 more than 70 undergraduate academic programs and represents the college鈥檚 undergraduate mission to the larger university through collaboration with other undergraduate schools and the Office of the Vice Provost for Undergraduate Education.听
鈥淭his is an exciting moment of change in the College of Arts and Science,鈥� Schachter said. 鈥淚 am thrilled to work with the college鈥檚 extraordinary students, faculty and staff to advance our mission of high-quality undergraduate education distinguished by rigorous academic inquiry, intellectual exploration, and expansion of student research and immersion opportunities. I am truly excited by the prospect of collaborating to shape the future of undergraduate education at Vanderbilt.鈥�
An award-winning scholar of 19th and 20th century modern Jewish literature and culture, Schachter is the author of two books and translator of a third. She has held a Fulbright Fellowship, and her scholarship has been funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the National Foundation for Jewish Culture. Since joining the Vanderbilt faculty in 2006, she has played a key role in the development of the Jewish studies program, serving as its chair from 2016 to 2019 and again from 2020 to 2023. 听听
鈥淎llison鈥檚 strong record as a scholar, teacher and program builder makes her the ideal person for this new leadership role,鈥� McNamara said. 听
Below is the full list of changes that have taken place in the College of Arts and Science dean鈥檚 office:听
- is vice dean and senior associate dean of faculty affairs, overseeing all issues related to tenured/tenure-track and continuing-track faculty, as well as departmental leadership.
- is senior associate dean of graduate education and research. While his title changed to align with titles used across the university, he will retain his current responsibilities overseeing graduate education and the college鈥檚 research portfolio.
- is senior associate dean of academic affairs, overseeing the college鈥檚 Office of Undergraduate Education and the A&S College Core Office.
- Four new assistant deans joined the Office of Undergraduate Education: , who will also serve as the director of undergraduate education, , and .
will continue to serve as director of the and will continue to serve as associate director.
鈥淚 am indebted to the outgoing deans for their valued service to the college,鈥� McNamara said. 鈥淪arah Igo, Cindy Kam, Roger Moore, Andrea Hearn, Dan Morgan, Carrie Russell and Jonathan Waters have shown tremendous dedication and leadership that have helped A&S advance and grow in important ways. As we welcome new leadership to the dean鈥檚 office, we will build on the strong foundation they have created and the important progress they have made.鈥�听
All College of Arts and Science dean鈥檚 office changes went into effect on July 1.听