Executive Vice President and Provost Karen Hanson responded to Dean Jean Quam’s retirement announcement on September 23:

“I write to follow up on the message that Dean Jean Quam sent earlier today, informing you of her decision to step down as dean on August 1, 2020. Please join me in extending deepest appreciation to Jean for her leadership of the college over the past ten years.

“Jean has served both the college and the University with distinction. When she assumed the deanship in 2009, the existing College of Education, College of Human Ecology, and General College had been newly brought together as CEHD; the college was only beginning to define its vision and had not yet embarked on critical strategic planning. Under her leadership, CEHD has made great strides in achieving its vision of increasing opportunities for all individuals across their lifespans, and it is positioned exceptionally well for the future.

“For example, CEHD is pursuing groundbreaking research in educational equity, autism, wellbeing and aging, and children’s mental health. Additionally, CEHD has partnered with the Medical School to propose a new interdisciplinary Institute of Child and Adolescent Brain Health. Jean has also overseen the building of a collaborative, respectful, and inclusive college culture, where diversity among the faculty, staff, and the student body is a priority and a strength.

“CEHD is now on solid financial footing, in part through Jean’s encouragement of innovation and technology that has led to new revenue streams, as demonstrated by the recent sale of Flipgrid to Microsoft. The college is also well ahead of schedule on its expanded campaign goal of $100 million.

“I am grateful that CEHD will continue to benefit from Dean Quam’s leadership for the next several months as the search for a new dean gets underway. I expect to launch a national search later this fall, with the aim of having the next executive vice president and provost name the new dean by the latter part of next spring semester.

“The support and engagement of the CEHD community will be vital to the success of this search, and so I invite your nominations of faculty, staff, and students to the search committee. The committee will shape the position profile for the new dean and ensure a strong and inclusive search process. Please send nominations for the search committee, including a brief word or two in support of the nomination, to provost@umn.edu by October 18. I will follow up later in the semester to outline next steps.

“Again, I extend my deepest appreciation to Jean for her exemplary service to CEHD and the University. She has kept a steady focus on the college’s vision and priorities, moving it into a position of strength. I also want to thank her personally for the excellent counsel she has provided me over the years. I am truly grateful for all she has accomplished, and I am grateful too for all the outstanding work you are all doing, under Jean’s leadership, on behalf of the college and the University.”