Dean of the College Melvyn P. Leffler announced yesterday he will resign from his post next August, four years after he took the job.
Leffler's resignation comes following his acceptance of the visiting Harmsworth Professorship in American history at Oxford University. He will begin his one-year stay at Oxford in fall 2002.
Leffler said he plans to use the intervening year to conduct academic research on the Cold War, his area of expertise. He said he needs a year to research the subject he will address, because he will deliver a series of public lectures as the Harmsworth Professor.
He said he also plans to outline his next book, which will address why the Cold War lasted as long as it did.
After his year at Oxford, Leffler will return to the University as a member of the History department faculty. His academic career will remain the core of his life, he said. Leffler took over as dean in September 1997, after 11 years in the History department.
University Provost Peter W. Low said he doesn't consider the announcement sudden or abnormal.
Many people in the University community cite Leffler's fundraising efforts as the start of a new era for the College.
"Dean Leffler's legacy might well be his fundraising performance," Vice President for Development Robert D. Sweeney said. "That will allow the College to pursue its main issues of faculty support, science and technology and the arts."
Low agreed with Sweeney, adding that the College has raised nearly double its initial $76 million goal for the Capital Campaign.
Sweeney said fundraising efforts should continue successfully even after Leffler leaves. Leffler built a strong fundraising team during his years as head of the College, he said.
Leffler said the College is "enormously underfunded," but he is pleased with recent fundraising efforts.
He noted several initiatives underway that will strengthen the College, including faculty recruitment, a new Ph.D. in music and the new Jewish and Media Studies programs.
Faculty members recognize Leffler's contributions to the College as well. Several noted he exercises the ability to mobilize and energize individuals.
"He has been a terrific dean - he is a great intellectual leader," former Faculty Senate Chairman David T. Gies said. "In Arts and Sciences we're at quite a loss. We are grateful for his extraordinary leadership."
Low said the University will begin searching for a new dean shortly. The search committee will seek applicants from colleges and universities all over the globe. Such searches usually take six to eight months, he added.
Read More
Police forcefully clear encampment near University Chapel, detain protesters
By Thomas Baxter and Finn Trainer | YesterdayThe University declared the encampment an unlawful assembly at 2:44 p.m.
Student Council passes appointment bill, approves new CIOs at final meeting of semester
By Arshiya Pant | 2 days agoMendoza Gonzalez also said she will be meeting with Kenyon R. Bonner, vice president and chief student affairs officer, to discuss further strategies for the Student Council Endowment Fund.
Professors speak about leading productive dialogue on Israel-Hamas war
By Lexie Stadler | 3 days agoThe event was hosted by the University’s Task Force on Religious Diversity and Belonging, which is designed to ensure that the University is welcoming to community members from all religions and cultures.
