Ronald T. Brown: named interim dean of dentistry school

Ronald. T. Brown has been named interim dean of the Kornberg School of Dentistry, starting May 1, according to a university press release.

Brown is dean of Temple’s College of Health Professions and a professor of public health. He is a pediatric psychologist who specializes in chronic illnesses and learning disabilities that affect children and adolescents.

The academic has been awarded more than $10 million in research funding through his career to study various issues in his field, including the oral health of black adolescents who have diabetes and learning impairments of survivors of childhood cancer.

Brown will continue to fill his role as dean of the College of Health Professions during the national search for a replacement for Martin F. Tansy.

In October, Tansy announced his intentions to resign. He first planned to leave June 30. A university was unavailable to immediately explain why an interim dean is needed May 1. Tansy, who first became dean in 1987 after one year as acting dean, plans to return to full-time teaching, another university release said. He has been a Temple faculty member for 45 years and will return to the university’s Department of Periodontology and Oral Implantology.

Brown had also been chairing the search advisory committee to replace Tansy. Deputy Provost Richard Englert will replace him. For more information on the search, see www.temple.edu/provost/dentistrydeansearch.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu.

New law school dean named: Epps to replace Reinstein

JoAnne A. Epps has been named the next dean of Temple’s Beasley School of Law, effective July 1.

The former associate dean will replace Robert J. Reinstein who will end his 19-year tenure when he steps down on Monday, June 30, hoping to return to teaching, according to a university release.

Epps, who specializes in trial advocacy and criminal procedure, will take over the law school, which boasts 64 faculty members, more than 1,200 students at Main Campus and more than 100 in the university’s law programs in Beijing and Tokyo.

She has been associate dean of academic affairs since 1989, primarily serving as a liason between Reinstein and the law faculty. She joined the law faculty in 1985, rising to full professor in 1994. Between 1980 and 1985, Epps was an assistant U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.

The first job for a 16-year-old Epps was as a cashier at Temple’s bookstore, and her mother was a Temple employee, according to the release.

Epps was the only law professor selected by the American Bar Association to travel to London to train Sudanese lawyers representing victims of the Darfur crisis. She has also taught in Temple’s law programs in Beijing.

Reinstein also served as vice president for international programs, but a replacement for that position has yet to be announced

Reinstein, the longest-serving dean among American law schools, served over expansive growth in the law school from 1989 to 2008. The law school’s endowment ballooned from $4 million to $57 million and faculty increased by 20 percent. This fall’s entering class has the highest academic record in the law school’s history, according to the release. Some 4,800 applicants, double what it was in 1989, compete for 300 roster spots.

In his role as vice president for international programs, Reinstein oversaw tremendous growth at Temple University-Japan and further developed Temple Rome into one of the top American study abroad programs. Reinstein, who joined Temple’s law faculty in 1969, served as a law professor and the university’s general counsel from 1982 to 1969. Prior to Temple, he was a contributing attorney for the NAACP and fought to integrate the Philadelphia Police and Fire departments, and other groups.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu

Diane Bryen leaving Institute on Disabilities

Diane Nelson Bryen will leave her post as executive director of Temple’s Institute on Disabilities in June after more than 15 years in the role, the university announced earlier this week.

She will be replaced by David T. Mitchell, formerly the first permanent director of the Ph.D. in Disability Studies at the University of Illinois-Chicago, the only one of its kind in the United States. Bryen first came to Temple in 1964 and first left with a masters degree in special education and a Ph.D. in educational psychology, a university release said.

She first taught at Temple, too, beginning as a special education professor in 1973. It wasn’t until 1991 that she was asked to lead the Institute on Disabilities. She has been at Temple since the 1960s so won’t be able to leave completely the university community, Bryen said.

Mitchell will officially take the helm on July 1. He has expressed interest in having Temple host just the second doctorate program for Disability Studies in the country, behind his former employer, and just the third in the world, also behind the University of Leeds in England, according to a university release.

His wife, Sharon Snyder, is on the faculty of the University of Illinois-Chicago. Plans for transitioning the family, with their two small children, to Philadelphia were not immediately announced.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu.

Research head Lemanski joins nonprofit board

Larry F. Lemanski, the senior vice president for research and strategic initiatives at Temple, has joined the board of directors of Biostrategy Partners Inc., an Elkins Park nonprofit servicing early stage life science companies in the region. The announcement was made March 4.

Lemanski started at Temple on Dec. 1, 2007, leaving a post at the University of Florida.

He was one of five new members added. The others are Charles R. Huntington Jr., vice president of wealth management for the Huntington Kraus Group of Citi Smih Barney in Berwyn; Carmen S. Italia Jr., president of the Montgomery County Industrial Development Corp. in East Norriton; Frank S. Keth, executive director emeritus of the Rutgers University-Camden Business Incubator in Camden, N.J. and Jennifer L. Kmiec, vice president of business development and marketing at InB Biotechnologies Inc. in Kennett Square.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu.

Also read: “New hire to boost research funding,” commentary called “New research Dean promises growth in funding” and all Research stories.

New research Dean promises growth in funding

Larry Lemanski already has a Temple lapel pin. It comes free when you shake the foundation of professorial research at a university.

The man with the thick gray goatee joined Temple on Dec. 1, ditching a stint he had Florida Atlantic University. In a November interview with the Temple News, President Ann Weaver Hart was awfully excited for him to join the party. Now we get to find out why.

LEMANSKI AND HART

At FAU, Lemanski was that university’s first vice president for research. He has come to Temple to replace Kenneth J. Soprano, who has expressed interest in focusing his attention on teaching. As senior vice president for research and strategic initiatives, Lemanski will be charged with coordinating research grants and further developing Temple’s culture of academic exploration.

It’s nothing unseen in the Hart administration. When Hart was introduced in May 2006 as the university’s ninth president, she was called a master fundraiser. She has gotten right to it.

While it began before her tenure, it was she who announced the public phase of a $350 million capital drive campaign. We’ve seen a Temple ‘T’ media blitz, a commitment to the school’s foreign campuses, and a devotion to the football team remaining a Division 1-A program, now known as the Football Bowl Subdivision. Admissions application totals and student enrollment are growing.

These are all fiscal decisions chronicling Temple’s recent surge in size and prestige. The growth is explosive, so the fall back will have to be sudden. Temple can’t run a sprint forever.

UNSTABLE EXPANSION

I don’t think this university needs the type of development Lemanski saw at Florida Atlantic – where he launched its research department and in five years tripled funding to $90 million, as reported by The Temple News. But that’s hardly the tune everyone is singing.

“Over the next five years, I think that we can accomplish tremendous amounts,” Lemanski told The Temple News. “I expect to be able to see the university doubling in funding during that period of time.”

HARTY EXCITEMENT

In her November sit-down with The Temple News, Hart seemed positively giddy about Lemanski joining staff. It’s not about his knowledge of anatomy, a subject he has expressed interest in teaching at the school of medicine.

Her excitement is about Lemanski’s documented ability to bolster university research. Something in which Hart, in her fundraising zeal, has intense and personal interest. No one can argue with attempts to further raise Temple’s profile as a respected research institution, but Hart’s first two years have ridden an impressive momentum surrounding this university. The sustainability of that energy and development needs to be questioned, Lemanski’s shake of the status included.

Christopher Wink can be reached at cwink@temple.edu.

New hire to boost research funding

Temple’s research enterprise is quickly growing as newly hired Senior Vice President for Research Larry F. Lemanski has a clear vision for the future.

As of Dec. 1, Lemanski began his journey to push Temple toward becoming a leading, world-renowned research institute. To achieve his goal, he said he plans to make research more “user-friendly” so it is easier for students and faculty to participate in studies and receive increased funding from various sources.

Lemanski is currently scheduling seminars to educate Temple’s researchers, which are meant to increase their capabilities of being successful for competitive grant funding. He also plans to work with state, local and federal legislators to get large grants through federal initiatives.

“I am hoping that we can get some federal earmarks to build pillars of excellence in some areas here on campus,” he said.

Lemanski said he also hopes to expand translational research, patenting the discoveries of students and faculties and then licensing the technology so it can be put to use. The university receives a portion of the money earned, which would enhance all the scholarly activities of the university. Some of the money earned is for indirect expenses, ultimately providing more opportunities for Temple students.

“We may not get a Gatorade like [the University of Florida] did, but we will certainly be successful in getting some things,” Lemanski said. “There may be a big hit at some point where Temple will get something very large that would significantly change, in a very short time, the complexion of the university and make it a world-renowned research university.”

Lemanski said he decided to join Temple because he felt his past experiences fit well with what the university is ready to accomplish. He said he finds significant momentum and excitement to move to the next level of research because of the addition of President Ann Weaver Hart and Provost Lisa Staiano-Coico, who understand the importance of establishing Temple as a major research university.

“Over the next five years, I think that we can accomplish tremendous amounts,” Lemanski said. “I think the university can move up to a world class status in a number of areas, and I expect to be able to see the university doubling in funding during that period of time.”

Previously, Lemanski worked as Florida Atlantic University’s first vice president for research. In five years, he increased their funding from $30 million to more than $90 million, set up their division of research, and created a Center of Excellence grant, which has yielded more than $40 million. The center also established four new companies, received 27 patents and published several works.

Lemanski also has a background in teaching and said he hopes to continue that as a professor of anatomy and cell biology for the Temple’s School of Medicine within the next two years.

Sarah Fry can be reached at sarahfry@temple.edu.

University names interim curator for Blockson Collection

Aslaku Berhanu, a reference librarian and cataloger for the Blockson Collection will succeed Charles Blockson as interim curator of the collection upon Blockson’s retirement Dec. 31.The Blockson Collection includes African American historical items dating back to 1581. Some materials in the collection include an edition of Dale Carnegie’s “Lincoln Unknown” – an autobiography of President Abraham Lincoln – in which an inscription tells the reader that the leather binding of the book was made from the skin of a lynched black man.Blockson said that Berhanu’s experience and tenure at the collection made her a good candidate for the position.Interim Provost Richard Englert described Berhanu as “the ideal person to provide care and continuity for the collection while we search for a permanent curator,” in a statement to the Temple Times.Berhanu has worked with the collection since 1988. She received a bachelor of arts in education from Addis Ababa University in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia and her master of library science degree from Rutgers University.But Blockson, who donated his collection to the university in 1982, said the job of curator is not just about the books.”Everything is not in the books,” he said.It’s also a job with the community – one that takes developing a relationship with the community of scholars, researchers, students, tourists, who visit the collection year after year, he said.Both Berhanu and Blockson are members of the search committee, chaired by Vice President of Student Affairs Theresa Powell, which was formed to find a curator who will replace Blockson when he retires at the end of the year.Blockson will serve as curator emeritus and will “help out when it’s needed,” he said.”I’m committed to working with the university and the president,” Blockson added.Berhanu will take over effective Jan. 2, 2007. She could not be reached for comment because she is out of the country.Sullivan Hall up for space reviewThe president has commissioned a review of space utilization in Sullivan Hall, which houses the administrative office of the president, the Blockson Collection and Tuttleman Counseling Services. The review is underway, according to Mark Eyerly, the university’s chief communications officer.Charmie R. Snetter can be reached at charmie.snetter@temple.edu.

Interim provost says he has no plans to keep the job

When President Ann Weaver Hart was appointed this summer, the university was also immediately faced with the task of filling another high level administrative position.Ira Schwartz, Temple’s Provost of four years, retired July 1, creating a vacancy for the position. Schwartz stepped down to act as president and chief executive officer of the Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia.One of Hart’s first actions in office was to appoint then-deputy provost Richard M. Englert as interim provost, effective July 1.Englert will serve as Temple’s chief academic officer until a permanent replacement is found.The provost is the second-highest-ranking administrativeposition behind the President.In charge of academic affairs, academic support programs, and research programs, the provost has a major hand in the workings of the university.According to Englert, his responsibilities, “run the gambit of the whole academic enterprise, and involves working very closely with deans, supporting faculty and students, and making sure that the academic programs are at the level they need to be.”Englert will act as provost during an interim period while an exploration is done by a search committee designatedby the university.Heading this committee is the Dean of the College of Health Professions, Dr. Ronald T. Brown. According to Brown, the search process has already begun, as Temple is currently accepting bids by outside search firms to aid in the course of their hunt.However, the complete list of search committee members has not been released. According to Brown, they are waiting on two Board of Trustee members’ acceptance of their committee positions before all names of members are released.The full committee should be announced shortly, possibly by this end of this week, according to Brown.A national search will be conducted by this committee to find a candidate to fill the role. According to Chief Communications Officer Mark Eyerly, “the university will be seeking an accomplished scholar and teacher with leadership experience in higher education.”Working with the president, the search committee will create a pool of candidates that will eventually be whittled down to one, whom the Board of Trustee’s will then elect as an officer of the university.The possibility remains that someone within the University may be named for the position, as was the case with another position within the provost hierarchy.Stephanie Smith, previously the Director of Academic Advising in the College of Liberal Arts, was recently named Associate Vice Provost.When asked about possibly being named as the next provost, Englert responded, “I have already told the President that she should have a free reign in selecting whoever she wants. She shouldn’t be wedded to an interim provost.”I don’t plan on applying for the position,” Englert added.Still, according to Englert, the university should have no problem finding a wealth of qualified candidates to fill the position, mainly, in his opinion, because of another recently added administrative official.”People are going to come because of President Ann Weaver Hart,” Englert said.The relationship between a provost and president is a vital one, according to Englert, and what kind of chemistry they have may be a deciding factor as to who is selected.”I suspect the president will want someone who fills a strong provost role,” said Englert.According to Brown, students should expect to see a new provost named within the academic year, most likely sometime in the spring.Nolan Rosenkrans can be reached at nolan.rosenkrans@temple.edu.

HART NAMED PRESIDENT

The university’s Board of Trustees announced Thursday, May 4, that Ann Weaver Hart, who currently leads the University of New Hampshire, will be Temple’s first female president.Effective July 1, Hart will replace outgoing President David Adamany, who will retire June 30 after serving nearly six years as president.Hart, 57, takes the reigns at Temple amid an aggressive faculty hiring campaign, rapid expansion and booming student enrollment, spearheaded by Adamany. She comes to Temple after serving as UNH’s president since 2002.”I am looking forward to collaborating with all of my colleagues at Temple, including the faculty, deans and administrators, and getting to know its remarkable students, alumni and friends in the community,” Hart said in a statement released by the university’s communications office. “As one leader of many leaders at Temple, I see my role as working to focus on our highest aspirations and dreams, building talent and taking concerted action to help us move forward.”Temple’s recent advancements in academics, admissions, faculty recruitment and campus life are being noticed in higher education circles and in the media. I am excited to be leading Temple into a period of tremendous growth and development.”The Board’s announcement comes two days after Hart visited Main Campus to discuss her plans for Temple’s future with students, faculty and alumni. On Tuesday, Hart assured students and staff that she is committed to diversity, accessibility, academic freedom and neighborhood involvement. Reaction was resoundingly positive, especially from faculty, who were at times rankled by Adamany’s leadership style.Hart, a career academic, has served as provost and vice president for academic affairs at Claremont Graduate University, near Los Angeles, and as special assistant to the president and dean of the University of Utah’s graduate school. She received both her master’s degree in history and her Ph.D. in educational administration from the University of Utah.An outsider to Philadelphia, Hart said Tuesday that she is looking forward to the challenge of managing a large, diverse institution based in one of the country’s largest cities.”Of course I need lessons,” Hart said. “I didn’t commit my life to higher education to avoid lessons.”Hart and her husband, Randy, have four daughters, two granddaughters and four grandsons.Brandon Lausch can be reached at blausch@temple.edu.

Different school, same staff for Dunphy

Men’s basketball coach Fran Dunphy said he was looking for loyalty, a solid work ethic and an understanding of the duties of coaching when he selected his first Temple coaching staff.It turns out Dunphy had to look no further than the coaches who worked with him at Penn.Dunphy completed his coaching staff Wednesday, naming Dave Duke the final member of his Temple staff. Dunphy had previously named former Quakers assistants Matt Langel and Shawn Trice – both of whom are former Penn players as well – to the staff.”They know me,” Dunphy said. “I know them. I know what their work ethic is like. I know what their loyalty factor is like.”As assistant coach, Duke brings the most coaching experience to the staff. He spent that last eight seasons working on Dunphy’s Penn staff, a span that included six Ivy League championships. Prior to his time at Penn, Duke coached Lehigh for eight seasons. His 90 wins at the school rank second all-time.Langel coached under Dunphy the last two seasons. He played for the Quakers from 1996-2000, leading the team to two Ivy League championships.Trice, a former Penn forward, began his coaching career last season after working as a YMCA sports coordinator in Detroit for seven years.Here’s a roundup of what has happened among Temple’s other sports since the semester ended:BASEBALLThough the Owls finished the season 12-41 overall, four Owls were awarded for strong individual performances by the newly formed Diamond Five, which represents the five Philadelphia area schools sporting a baseball program.Freshman outfielder Jamie Abercrombie was named the Rookie of Year. The Owls’ lead-off hitter hit .288, scored 21 runs and swiped nine bases.Junior third baseman Dan Brady, sophomore pitcher Arshwin Asjes and sophomore outfielder Devon Swope each earned a place on the All-Diamond team. Brady’s .310 average, seven homers, 35 runs batted in and 33 runs led the team. Asjes finished the season with a 5-7 record and 4.26 earned run average. Swope batted .303 and led the Owls with 17 doubles.Earlier last month, Director of Athletics Bill Bradshaw announced the re-naming of the baseball field to the James “Skip” Wilson Field to honor the former coach who retired last fall. Wilson concluded his career as the winningest coach in Temple history, with 1,034 wins.FIELD HOCKEYSenior Ashley Shepps was named to the 2006 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District II Women’s At-Large Second team. She held a 3.89 grade-point-average during her tenure with the Owls and was awarded Temple’s Female Student Athlete of the Year Award.LACROSSEJunior midfielders Casey Cech and Allison Frengs, who helped lead the Owls to a second-place finish at the Atlantic Ten Conference tournament last month, were named Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Coaches Association Regional All-Americans. Both players were also named to the A-10 First team.Frengs, a first team regional all-American, earned the status for the second consecutive season. Her five-goal performance against St. Bonaventure in the A-10 semifinals secured a comeback win. Her season total of 35 goals led the Owls.Cech, a second team all-American selection, finished third on the team in scoring with 32 goals while adding 18 assists. She stepped up her game in the A-10 tournament, providing the Owls two eight-point games.MEN’S BASKETBALLPoint guard Mardy Collins has been busy working out for various NBA teams in preparation for the June 28 draft. Thus far, Collins completed workouts for the Boston Celtics, Chicago Bulls, Minnesota Timberwolves, New York Knicks, Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz. He will workout for the Philadelphia 76ers tomorrow.Several mock drafts have Collins going in the middle of the first round. After working out for the Bulls, Collins told Bulls.com that he thinks he would be a good fit for the team.”They’re young and they’ve shown that they compete every night,” Collins said. “They’re the hardest playing team in the NBA. If I was fortunate enough to get picked by this team, I think I’d fit in nicely with the smaller guards, being able to play along side [center Kirk] Hinrich or [guard Ben] Gordon and guard the bigger guards on the floor.”As a senior, Collins led the Owls with 16.8 points per game, 127 assists and 89 steals.Another former Temple guard, Lynn Greer, was recently named the Most Valuable Player of Italy’s top professional league, Lega A. In leading his team to the 2006 Italian Cup, Greer averaged 22.8 points and 3.4 assists per game. He netted 91 percent of his free throws.Greer ended his Temple career in 2002, as the Owls’ second-highest scorer with 2,099 points. His .852 free throw percentage and 305 three-pointers are Temple records.TRACK AND FIELDMen’s middle distance runner Matt Kobialka was named to the A-10’s all-Academic team. A history major, Kobialka owns a 3.73 GPA.WOMEN’S BASKETBALLIncoming freshman forward Jasmine Stone has been invited to try out for the 2006 United States Basketball U18 National Team. The tryouts will be held June 16-19 in Colorado Springs, Colo. Stone will be one of 34 players ages 18 and younger attempting make the final 12-player squad.John Kopp can be reached at jpk85@juno.com.