Deans of St. Thomas schools and colleges are sources of strategic vision and new ideas. They are tasked with keeping the university "ahead of the curve" in the quality of their programs.
The success of St. Thomas depends on the success of each school and college in translating the vision of the university into a set of valuable and desirable academic programs in its area. As CEOs of their respective units, deans are responsible for the schools’ and colleges’ overall strategic direction as well as day-to-day management.
A successful dean at St. Thomas is the hub for all faculty and staff ideas about programs and other initiatives that can extend the positive effects of a school, deepen its mission, or otherwise improve its ability to advance the university’s focal points of access, excellence and Catholic identity. Given these responsibilities, deans need resources to allocate to strategic purposes and special programs.
Naming opportunities are available for deanships, either by funding the dean’s chair (salary) or by creating an endowed fund to support entrepreneurial efforts (discretionary dollars) within a college or school. These strategic funds help to initiate activities, designed by the dean, to extend and enhance departmental goals.
Strategic funds are assigned for project-length durations, at the end of which they are reassigned to other new endeavors. They make possible school- and college-specific initiatives that enhance the reputations of programs and departments, increase the variety of offerings within programs, boost rankings, attract more students, and offer cutting-edge opportunities for students and faculty members.
St. Thomas has many initiatives on the drawing board that need only funding to be activated. These include a model training laboratory for counselor education in the School of Professional Psychology, international service-learning programs such as the School of Engineering project in Mali, and development of a Center for the Study of Culturally Sensitive Pedagogy in the School of Education.
Deanships and strategic funds are needed in the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Applied Professional Studies, the School of Social Work and the School of Engineering. It is through named deanships that St. Thomas can attract and/or retain exceptional academic leaders who will incorporate the St. Thomas mission vigorously into specific activities within their units.