Four New Women Deans

Mary Jo Gonzales is the new dean of students and assistant vice president for student affairs at the University of Rhode Island. She was associate dean of students and director of the Academic Success Center at Iowa State University. Previously, she was director of the Academic Success Center at Dickinson State University in North Dakota.

Dr. Gonzales is a graduate of San Jose State University in California. She holds a master’s degree and a doctorate in education from Washington State University.

Susan Frye was named dean of the University of Wyoming Outreach School. She will begin her new duties at the beginning of the fall semester.

Dr. Frye joined the faculty at the University of Wyoming in 1986. She has served as chaired the department of English and the university’s Faculty Senate.

A graduate of Smith College in Northampton, Massachusetts, Dr. Frye earned a master’s degree from the University of New Mexico and a Ph.D. at Stanford University.

Shirley Lefever-Davis was appointed interim dean of the College of Education at Wichita State University in Kansas. She will serve as dean during the 2013-14 academic year. Dr. Lefever-Davis is a professor of education and has served as associate dean for assessment and accreditation.

Professor Lefever-Davis holds bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees, all from Kansas State University.

Mary Gowan was appointed dean of the College of Business at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. She is the former dean of the Martha and Spencer Love School of Business at Elon University in North Carolina.

Dr. Gowan is a graduate of Southwest Baptist College in Bolivar, Missouri. She holds a master’s degree from Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina, and a Ph.D. from the University of Georgia.