Todd Diacon, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs, announced Jan. 29 the search for the new dean of the College of Arts and Sciences has been narrowed down to three potential candidates.

The candidates include Elizabeth Chilton, Ph.D., from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst, Andrew Tsin, Ph.D., from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and Suzanna Rose, Ph.D., from Florida International University.

John Crawford, dean of the College of the Arts and chair of the search committee for the new College of Arts and Sciences dean, said he and the committee were looking for people who were very strong in areas of administration.

“It’s a process where you start with a large group of people and funnel it down to a few,” Crawford said.

Crawford said the search began with 64 possible candidates and was narrowed down to 11. He said after narrowing the candidates down to 11 possibilities, he and the committee interviewed each individually at the Cleveland International Airport, each lasting about an hour.

Crawford said the ideal candidate for dean of the College of Arts and Sciences would be a department chair or have some university chair experience.

Chilton said she was drawn to Kent State because of its commitment to its students, research and diversity.

Chilton said she spent most of her career at Harvard and at the University of Massachusetts-Amherst.

“A lot of universities that aspire to be strong in research often neglect the student experience,” Chilton said.

Rose was nominated for the position at Kent State and was asked if she wanted to submit a letter of interest.

“Kent State’s strong research and teaching reputation was very attractive and, even though I was not on the job market, I decided to send the letter,” Rose said.

Rose said the interview process for dean was very involved because so many people were interested in the selection process.

“A lot of study and forethought is required for a candidate to learn as much as possible about the institution before the visit,” Rose said.

Rose said, if chosen, her top priorities would be excellence in research, education, access, and engagement.

“My goal would be to contribute to building on the strengths of the university in collaboration with the administration, faculty and students,” Rose said.

Rose said she became familiar with Kent State from various news sources and heard about its growth in the past few years with the arrival of President Lester Lefton.

She said Kent State has a strong research agenda and an excellent faculty.

“My academic training and scientific background are useful in administration because there are always budgets and data to consider and background research to do,” Rose said.

Tsin said he was also nominated to be potential dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Kent State by a colleague from the University of Texas at San Antonio.

“Kent State University is an excellent university with many resources for student success, which is my greatest passion as a faculty and an administrator,” Tsin said.

Tsin said his priorities would include student success, faculty support and research funding.

“I enjoy interacting with students in the classroom and in the research lab,” Tsin said. “There is no greater joy to me than to learn that my students have reached their full potentials.”

Emily Moran is the College of Arts and Sciences reporter for The Daily Kent Stater.

Contact Emily Moran at [email protected].