School of Education dean finalists announced

The names of three finalists for dean of the School of Education were presented this week to Chancellor John D. Wiley by a 17-member search and screen committee.

“This was a very effective search and the committee has identified three excellent candidates with the talent to advance our strong tradition of training educators and conducting educational research,” Wiley says. “Their qualifications and commitment to education are superb, and all are accomplished scholars and administrators with impressive track records of leadership.”

The panel, chaired by Leonard Abbeduto, of the Department of Educational Psychology, conducted a nationwide search and recommended these three finalists:

• Peg (Marguerite) Barratt, a professor at Michigan State University in the department of family and child ecology and the department of psychology since 1998 and currently division director of behavioral and cognitive sciences at the National Science Foundation. Barratt was on the faculty at UW–Madison in the School of Human Ecology from 1979-1998 and served as chair of the department of human development and family studies.
• Jane Close Conoley, dean and professor of the College of Education and Human Development at Texas A&M University. She has held those posts since 1996, and prior to that she was she was professor and chair of the department of educational psychology at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln from 1989-1994 and associate dean for research and curriculum at the school’s Teachers College from 1994-1996.
• Julie Underwood, general counsel and associate executive director of the National School Boards Association since 1998. From 1995-1998, Underwood was dean of the School of Education and Allied Professions at Miami University. From 1986-1995 she served on the UW–Madison faculty, and held posts including chair of the department of educational administration and associate dean in the School of Education.

The university will invite all three finalists for return visits to the campus to meet with administrators, faculty, staff and students. A final decision is expected to be made by June.

The School of Education’s eight academic departments enroll more than 2,300 undergraduates and more than 1,000 graduate students in a diverse range of programs. The school also plays a major national role in research, with its Wisconsin Center for Education Research housing nearly $25 million a year in research projects.

The post came open when W. Charles Read, dean of the school since 1995, announced last September that he will retire on June 30, capping a 35-year career at UW–Madison.