Jacqueline Dixon has been named the interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences until a replacement for Michael R. Halleran, the former dean, is found.
In her new position, Dixon faces the immediate problems that the economy brings. She plans to keep the school affordable while maintaining the quality of the school.
“What are three problems we face?” she said. “The economy, the economy, the economy.”
As of May 7, the school’s numbers for the incoming class of 2009 that have paid their deposit are down 10 percent compared to last year, which Dixon said is not a crisis.
However, this number has been adjusted to account for the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences becoming a separate entity from the School of Arts and Sciences at the beginning of the academic year.
The university as a whole is down one percent in terms of students that have paid their deposits compared to last year’s class.
“These numbers are fluid and will continue to change through the summer,” Dixon said in an email.
As the interim dean, Dixon can still be considered a candidate for the Dean of Arts and Sciences. Dixon said that traditionally the university has looked outside of its faculty for deans.
Dixon will begin this position on July 1.
Halleran left the University of Miami after taking the offer to be the provost at the College of William & Mary.
Dixon has been a member of UM’s faculty since 1992. She began her career at UM in the Marine Geology and Geophysics at the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science. In 2006, she became the senior associate dean for the life and physical sciences.
Dixon got her bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Stanford University and a Ph.D. from California Institute of Technology.