Simmons College in Boston Names Three Women to Dean Positions

Simmons College in Boston has announced the appointment of four new deans to lead its four newly organized colleges. Three of the new deans are women.

Judy Beal was appointed dean of the College of Natural, Behavioral, and Health Sciences. She has led the Simmons School of Nursing and Health Sciences since 2011. Before joining the faculty at Simmons College in 1983, Dr. Beal taught at Boston University and Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York. Dr. Beal is a graduate of Skidmore College. She holds a master’s degree in nursing from Yale University and a doctorate in nursing science from Boston University.

Stephanie Berzin was named dean of the College of Social Sciences, Policy, and Practice. She has been serving as assistant dean for the doctoral program in the School of Social Work at Boston College, She has taught at Boston College since 2006. She is the co-author of Innovation From Within: Redefining How Nonprofits Solve Problems (Oxford University Press, 2018). Dr. Berzin is a graduate of Cornell University in Ithaca, New York, where she majored in psychology. She holds a master of social work degree from Columbia University and a Ph.D. in social welfare from the University of California, Berkeley.

Marie desJardins was appointed dean of the College of Organizational, Computational, and Information Sciences. She has been serving as associate dean of academic affairs and professor of computer science and electrical engineering in the College of Engineering and Information Technology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County. She is an expert on artificial intelligence. Dr. desJardins is a graduate of Harvard University, where she majored in engineering and computer science. She holds a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of California, Berkeley.