New Arts and Sciences Faculty Dean Chosen

John Harrington, Ph.D., current dean of the School of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, has been appointed the new dean of the faculty of arts and sciences at Fordham. Chief Academic Officer Stephen Freedman broke the news in an e-mail on March 9.

"Scholarship, academic leadership and research experience are the three key qualities we were looking for in a new dean of faculty of arts and sciences," Freedman said. "Dr. Harrington is abundantly qualified in those areas and is an excellent choice to help nurture faculty as Fordham comes into its own as a top tier university."

Harrington has a unique background for a university administrator. A former English professor, he is an oft-published scholar of Irish literature, on which he has edited several anthologies and written criticism. Harrington has also had the distinctive experience of serving as dean of liberal arts colleges at technical schools – Cooper Union and RPI, both known for engineering.

"It's a big opportunity for me to go and work in liberal arts and sciences with people who are already believers in it," Harrington told The Ram in a phone interview.

He said that his familiarity with Fordham, the school's reputation and the job itself all attracted him.

"I wasn't looking for a job, but I really wanted this one," he said. "I had one sister go to Rose Hill and the law school, and two nieces down there since, so I knew a lot about how strong the school was. It's also the way the job was defined. A very interesting group of faculty members worked on a task force and wrote a description of this job that is really coordinating the work of others – of faculty, deans – and I think that's exciting."

The dean of the faculty essentially represents the faculty and the entire academic community to the president and board of trustees.

"This should be of real interest to students too, because students take as much interest in curriculum as they do in other things," Harrington said.

He will officially take the position on July 1. Harrington said he plans to learn as much as he can about the University before thinking about any changes or new directions.

"I expect to come as a really good student, and I'm going to begin ahead of time, and it's going to be a listening tour," he said. "I need to learn a lot about who's at Fordham and what they want to do. It's interesting that I'll now have been at three historic New York institutions, and they all have different missions. What I want to do is join the mission of Fordham. I'm not coming in with a long list of things I think should be changed immediately."

Rev. Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of the University, told Fordham.edu that Harrington's success in adding liberal arts programs at RPI and increasing by 20 percent the number of liberal arts students admitted speaks to his abilities.

"It is no secret that change is coming to academia, and with that change comes the opportunity for growth and renewal," McShane said. "Therefore, it is fitting that we appoint as dean of the arts and sciences faculty someone who is adept at managing change, and whose scholarly and leadership experience give him the skills to help guide our faculty and our University into a position of preeminence."