Two Women Scholars Who Have Been Appointed to Dean Positions at State Universities in the West

Susan Gardner has been named dean of Oregon State University’s College of Education. She will start her new position on February 28. Dr. Gardner has been serving as a professor of higher education at the University of Maine. She has had a strong focus on equity and inclusion in education throughout her career. She has directed the university’s women’s, gender, and sexuality studies interdisciplinary program. Dr. Gardner began her faculty career at Louisiana State University in 2005 and moved to the University of Maine in 2007.

A first-generation college student, Dr. Gardner graduated with her bachelor’s degree in education and Spanish from Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1996. She then worked as a high school Spanish teacher in Wisconsin while earning her master’s degree part-time in education from the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse. In 2001, she moved to the state of Washington to begin work as a student affairs administrator at Washington State University, while completing her doctorate in higher education in 2005.

Katherine McCall was appointed acting dean of the College of Science at the University of Nevada, Reno. She will serve in this role until at least the end of the year. Dr. McCall has been serving as associate dean. Dr. McCall has served as chair of the department of physics at the university and has been instrumental in providing the foundation for the highly successful Women in Science and Engineering (WISE) program. She has been with the University of Nevada for 25 years.

“I am extremely honored to lead the College of Science,” Dr. McCall said. “I look forward to working with our faculty, staff, and students as well as our alumni and friends, to explore ways we can continue to enhance the student, faculty, and staff experience within our college, grow our impactful research portfolio and also bridge any strategic gaps on our campus through interdisciplinary collaboration and cooperation.”