Dean’s search committee meeting for the College of Education

Wrap up of the Dean's Search Committee Meeting.
Photo submitted by Destiny Taylor

Florida A&M University’s College of Education is under pressure to find a new dean for the school.

On Thursday, the Dean’s Search Committee met to narrow down the candidates for the schools future dean. The Office of the Provost is urging the committee to decide promptly, as they are hoping to secure a dean within the next two weeks.

Nine committee members sat and discussed 13 potential candidates. After nearly two hours of deliberation, the search was narrowed down to five applicants. Alfred Bryant, Nicole S. Martin, Daniel Rosboro, Allison Watson and Tyler Ferrell are among those in consideration.

Briana Warrell, a transfer student majoring in Health Education, said, “It would be nice to have someone permanent in office…I always make an effort to establish a relationship with the professors and the staff. I’ve been here a little over a year and we’re on our third dean, so I really hope they find someone.”

The College of Education came close to finding a new dean back in March, but after the first round of interviews there was a delay.

Marlon Honeywell, Ph.D., Executive Associate Dean for Academic Affairs, said, “The Office of Provost wants this done fast and is prepared to make an offer this semester. They want to have this done within the next two weeks.”

Although some members of the committee agree, others are not sure if two weeks is a reasonable amount of time to complete this process.

After the committee reviews the application, they must thoroughly look into the accreditation, publication and K-12 teaching experience of the candidate. From there, each committee member will vote on the candidate. If majority of the committee votes yes then the committee move forward with that person.

The next step is to Skype interview each of the candidates. The committee dedicates one hour per interview, and 10-15 minutes afterwards for discussion. During this process, each committee member will be given a question to ask the candidate. Allowing each of them to speak directly to the interviewee.

Clarification on what is required by both the search committee and the candidate seemed to be an ongoing topic in the meeting.

Associate Professor in Gore Educational Complex David White, Ph.D., said, “Some parts of the application are poorly written. For example, a section in the application says ‘A successful candidate should demonstrate a record of teaching and/or experienced appointment’.”

That “and/or” could be the simple reason the selection process has taken so long. Candidates aren’t having the right requirements because it’s not exactly clear what the committee is asking for. However, White emphasized that it is “very clear that we are asking for K-12 teaching experience.”

All in all, the Dean’s Search Committee has finalized their selections. They will interview each of the candidates, via Skype, on Oct. 29 from 11 a.m. – 6 p.m.