Ricardo D. Hall will be the new dean of students effective July 10, administrators told The Hurricane Monday. He will be replacing Dean William W. Sandler Jr., who is retiring this summer after working in the university for 43 years, 17 of those as dean of students.
Hall, originally from Cleveland, Ohio, is the associate dean of student services at Wake Forest University.
“I’m really excited about joining this community of people,” Hall said in phone interview Tuesday. “I’m looking forward to learning about the campus culture and the community culture.”
Hall will be working under Pat Whitely, vice president for student affairs. Whitely said Hall was “the unequivocal first choice” of the dean of students search committee.
“We are thrilled that he has accepted our offer to join the university family,” Whitely said. “I have no doubt he will be a stellar dean of students. The students at Wake Forest gave him rave reviews.”
Hall holds a doctorate in educational leadership from Clemson University and a B.B.A. in business management from Ohio University. Before working in his current position, he was assistant dean of students and an academic advisor at Wake Forest, associate director of judicial services at Clemson, and residence director at Indiana University of Pennsylvania.
“Dr. Hall will have a profound impact on the culture and spirit of our university,” said Terri-Ann Bennett, senior, president of United Black Students and student trustee. “His appointment is proof that we are a part of a progressive and conscientious institution. Too bad I won’t be here to enjoy his tenure.”
The new dean said he looks forward to working face-to-face with students.
“I think student affairs is about interacting with students,” Hall said. “Not across a desk or through written correspondence, but seeing what the true pulse is of the undergraduate student body.”
Hall visited the university for the first time from March 1 to 3, where he met with administrators, faculty, staff, and student leaders. After this visit, the new dean said he was impressed by the focus on student life at the university.
“From the administration, from the faculty, it was clear that Miami is very much a student-centered environment,” Hall said. “The things that are done with an academic emphasis, with a student affairs emphasis, are done with an interest in bettering the student experiences at Miami.
“Everything from programming, to course selection, to the work of the resident masters and academic deans.we didn’t have conversations that you might have at other institutions about maximizing money but about bettering student experiences. I was very impressed by that,” he said.
Of his achievements at Wake Forest, Hall said he is proud of students getting to know him and coming to him for advice and advising.
Once he arrives at Miami, Hall said he plans to review UM’s policies and procedures to understand the university’s system, which he said is a little different from systems he has worked with before.
The dean of students’ office runs the center for alcohol and drug education; Greek affairs; the honor council; the chaplains’ association, and student judicial and disciplinary affairs.
Hall will move to Miami with his wife and three daughters, ages 8, 7, and one month.
Patricia Mazzei can be contacted at pmazzei@miami.edu.