Three new positions have been created in the Dean of the College Office in response to departmental staffing changes and to the Board of Trustees' social and residential life initiative.
The three new positions within the office are special assistant to the dean of the College, director of student programs at the Hopkins Center and dean of upperclass students. The first two positions will deal directly with the implementation of the initiative.
The position most influenced by the Trustee initiative is the special assistant to the dean of the College. Current Acting Dean of Residential Life Mary Liscinsky will step into that position this September.
StoryLiscinsky said the duties of her new position will involve "working with the division's response: gathering information, meeting with student groups, helping the new dean of residential life transition into the College, participating in any type of special projects that come and some administrative duties."
"There has always been a need for more resources in the dean of the College area, especially in light of the Trustee initiative," she said. "I have a definite interest in the implications of the initiative."
Despite the position's heavy tie to the Trustees' initiative, Liscinsky said that the post would be permanent as more issues will come up as the years progress.
Current Acting Senior Associate Dean of the College Katherine Burke will be the new director of student programs at the Hopkins Center.
Burke will oversee all student organizations under the Hopkins Center including all musical ensembles, student workshops and the dance program.
"The position was approved more than a year ago. The goal is to have someone at the Hop devote full attention to student programs," she said. "I was a musician in another part of my life. This is an incredibly exciting opportunity."
Burke will begin her new position in September.
Sylvia Langford will be the new acting dean of upperclass students.
"The office is looking at ways to more efficiently and effectively handle our support for students," said Langford, currently the assistant dean in the upperclass deans office and director of minority recruitment in the admissions office.
Her new position as dean of upperclass students is being reintroduced after a six-year hiatus during which the senior associate dean of the College handled the responsibilities of both.
"There has been a big increase in the kinds of things we are being asked to do. We are looking to see if this is a better model," Langford said.
She will begin her new duties July 1.
Gail Zimmerman will serve as the Acting Dean of the First Year Office, temporarily filling the position vacated by Peter Goldsmith, who is leaving to become dean of the college at Oberlin College.