The search for a new Yale School of Nursing dean is underway, as a committee of faculty members reviews applications and recommendations from across the nation.
Headed by Stephanie Spangler, Yale’s deputy provost for biomedical and health affairs, the search committee consists of five nursing school faculty members and three from the medical school. The group has posted advertisements in a number of publications, including the Chronicle of Higher Education, in addition to having sent letters requesting candidate recommendations to other universities and nursing schools.
Spangler said no final deadline has been set for interviewing or selecting candidates yet, but the committee expects to conduct the search in a timely fashion.
“We’re still looking at dozens of names,” Spangler said. “It is our every hope and expectation to have selected a new dean by next [academic] year.”
Though Spangler said confidentiality rules prevent her from releasing details about the current candidates for the position, she did not rule out the possibility that applicants from Yale are being considered.
“We are always delighted when an internal candidate emerges,” Spangler said. “In general, we are looking for a person who has demonstrated leadership abilities, who could really blend the school’s rich tradition in clinical practice with its great success in building its research enterprise, and who could engage the faculty.”
Yale President Richard Levin said the committee is in the preliminary stages of the search and is compiling all candidates and recommendations into a list. Once this process is complete, Spangler’s panel will begin scheduling interviews to further evaluate the applicant pool and determine candidates for the position.
Nursing School spokesman Ilya Sverdlov said interim Nursing School Dean Katherine Jones has been actively supporting new research and furthering the school’s long-term goals in clinical work over the last few months. Earlier this semester Jones said she did not plan to apply for the permanent dean position.
Jones was appointed by Yale President Richard Levin at the beginning of September to replace former Nursing School Dean Catherine Gilliss, who now heads the Duke University School of Nursing — her alma mater. Gilliss had been the dean of Yale’s nursing school since 1998.
Sverdlov said Jones has been very involved in both the nursing school and greater community.
“Dean Jones has been absolutely wonderful in furthering the strategic plans of the school, focusing on continuing leadership in research and clinical practice, while working with partners in the community to bring important programs to public schools,” Sverdlov said. “It has been a smooth transition and things have been advancing over the last couple of months.”
Jones has overseen a partnership between the nursing school and New Haven’s Hill Regional Career High School, Sverdlov said, where a number of Yale faculty regularly visit to help students learn more about careers in healthcare and work on college essays.
While the committee has already made progress in its search for qualified dean candidates, Spangler said, she does not expect any major developments before January.