Provost Lisa Staiano-Coico and a search committee will be interviewing potential law school dean candidates this week.
Staiano-Coico said the search committee will then nominate two or three candidates to come to campus for a public interview by the end of April.
Robert J. Reinstein, the current Beasley School of Law dean and vice president of International Programs, stepped down from his positions in the fall 2007 semester to fulfill his desire to resume teaching law at Temple.
“The new dean coming in is going to have big shoes to fill, but it’s an exciting time. Temple is at an exciting point of its history,” Staiano-Coico said.
The chair of the dean search is Hai-Lung Dai, the dean of the College of Science and Technology. The search advisory committee consists of members of the board of trustees, law school alumni, law school faculty, a senior administrator and a student representative.
After the candidates are narrowed down, they will come for a public interview. They will meet with the law school faculty, President Ann Weaver Hart, Staiano-Coico, and the deans of other colleges at Temple.
Shortly after the public interview, Staiano-Coico and Hart plan to make an offer to one of the candidates. They said they hope to have them start by July 2008.
Before the final decision is made, there will be an open forum where students and faculty can meet with the nominee to ask questions and get an understanding of who they are.
All students and faculty are invited to participate. From this, Staiano-Coico said she will gain feedback from the participants to help get a better understanding of the candidates.
Staiano-Coico said the qualities the new dean should include a strategic view, fundraising capabilities and experience, collaborative style, a very strong support for the issue of global law and awareness of Temple’s values. She is also looking for someone who has demonstrated strong leadership experience and skill.
She said she hopes that the new dean will energize the students and bring a new perspective and a fresh view to Temple, Staiano-Coico said.
“It’s also very important to have new faces and fresh ideas because that’s the way the university moves forward and has an innovative edge,” Staiano-Coico said.
Sarah Fry can be reached at sarahfry@temple.edu.
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