Academic Deans

Academic Deans report to the Vice President for Academic Affairs and are responsible for directing all aspects of an academic division (School). Each Dean serves as the point of contact for all instructional staff, students and parents for their specific School. The Dean collaborates with Department Chairs, Program Coordinators and Graduate Coordinators¹ to ensure that the academic component of each program is meeting expectations. The Dean sets a professional tone for the program and serves as a positive role model for staff and students.

Qualifications and Appointment

The Dean shall possess the qualifications required, at the time of their appointment, to be tenured as an Associate or Full Professor in one of the disciplines in the School of which s/he is the Dean.

Candidates for a Deanship shall have been recommended to the Vice President for Academic Affairs (VPAA) by a search committee established by the VPAA, whose composition includes but is not limited to a representation of tenured and non-tenured faculty members from the School.

The Search committee may include one or more faculty from other Schools and one or more administrators. Deans are appointed by, report to, and serve at the pleasure of the VPAA.

Deans serve as the chief academic administrator of their School and shall have the rights and privileges of a Faculty member while in that position. Although the Dean holds faculty rank, they shall not vote at Faculty meetings, serve on Faculty committees, nor be promoted in Faculty rank. As an administrator, the Dean is subject to the conditions of employment that pertain to all full-time administrators at the College.

Duties and Responsibilities of the Dean

The Dean shall:
1. Take overall responsibility for and provide leadership to the academic programs in the School.
2. Support Faculty members in their teaching duties and in their professional development.
3. Facilitate development of the academic unit’s curriculums.
4. Consult with the Faculty on curricular and Faculty development.
5. Encourage and contribute to the development of interdisciplinary curricular proposals in consultation with the appropriate Faculty, Department Chairs and fellow Deans, as well as the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
The management responsibilities of the Dean shall include the following:
1. In collaboration with the Faculty, development of educational policies affecting departmental programs for final approval by the Vice President for Academic Affairs and the President.
2. After consulting with Department Chairs and Faculty, obtain approval from the Vice President for Academic Affairs to hire full-time Faculty. The Dean shall have overall responsibility for the recruitment of Faculty, shall initiate the charge for the search committees, shall monitor the process, and shall, in consultation with the Department Chair, recommend to the Vice President for Academic Affairs all new Faculty appointments. The Dean shall confer and consult with the Vice President for Academic Affairs regarding staff, curriculum, scholarship activities and educational services.
3. Implement College policies and administrative procedures regarding Faculty, students, library, College budgetary matters, and inter-college communications.
4. Evaluate the administrative performance of Department Chairs, Program Directors, Graduate Coordinators and administrative support personnel on an annual basis.
The Dean may teach - at their discretion, and as time and other responsibilities permit - one course per semester within their field of expertise.
The Dean shall review the recommendations of the Peer Review Committees for full time faculty and provide additional recommendations and feedback to the Promotion and Tenure Committee.
The Dean shall serve on the VPAA’s Deans and Chairs Council, the President’s College Council, and may be assigned to other committees by the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
The Dean shall have overall responsibility for all undergraduate and graduate activity within the School.
The Dean, in consultation with the appropriate Department Chair, shall be responsible for the reappointment or non-reappointment of all non-tenure track and adjunct Faculty in the School.
The Dean shall meet regularly with the School’s Department Chairs and shall meet with individual Department Chairs, Program Directors and Graduate Coordinators, as necessary, to assist them in the performance of their duties.
The Dean, in cooperation with the Faculty, shall pursue grants and other external funding which will support the curriculum and professional development of Faculty in the School.
The Dean shall seek to serve on advisory councils or boards of directors or trustees for organizations whose missions are related to the academic disciplines in the Dean's School.
The Dean shall provide leadership in the creation and nurturing of Advisory Boards related to the majors in the School.
The Dean shall be familiar with and educate the School Faculty on the subject of the requirements and procedures of accrediting bodies that may be relevant to the School.
The Dean shall meet with the Vice President for Academic Affairs and other Deans and Division Chairs regularly to coordinate the administration of the academic and related programs at the College.
The Dean, together with the Department Chairs, shall project personnel (faculty and staff) needs and communicate the plan to the Vice President for Academic Affairs annually.
The Dean, in consultation with the Department Chairs and the Office of Human Resources, shall be responsible for the employment of all support staff for the School.
The Dean shall work with the Admissions Office to develop and implement strategies for recruiting high quality students who are interested in majoring in all the programs the School offers.
The Dean shall maintain, review, and communicate regularly to the Department Chairs data regarding student enrollment, student performance, attrition, grading, and academic standards.
With the exception of grade appeals, for which there is a separately defined process, the Dean shall review and decide appeals from students regarding decisions or actions of School Faculty.
The Dean shall maintain copies of course syllabi; shall supervise, in consultation with the Department Chairs, Program Directors and Graduate Coordinators, the preparation and approval of catalog updates; and shall prepare, in consultation with the Department Chairs, Program Directors and Graduate Coordinators, materials for accreditation documents and/or approval of programs by the New York State Department of Education (NYSED).
The Dean shall prepare, in consultation with the Department Chairs, the School’s budget and shall present it to the Vice President for Academic Affairs.
The Dean shall supervise the Department Chairs in the allocation, administration, and monitoring of School funds.
The Dean, in consultation with the Department Chairs, shall prepare on an annual basis long-, medium-, and short-term projections of the School's financial needs.
The Dean, in consultation with the Department Chairs, shall prepare and submit to the Vice President for Academic Affairs for approval, the School’s Annual Report.

¹Although it is understood that some Schools at MSMC may have only one Department Chair, Program Coordinator or Graduate Coordinator, while others may have more, the plural form of each is used throughout this section for the sake of simplicity.