Maxson stepping down as UI liberal arts dean

IOWA CITY - A new dean for the University of Iowa's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences must be an academic leader who is a strong fundraiser and consensus-builder in a large and complex college, UI Provost Barry Butler said.

Linda Maxson announced Friday she will step down from the dean position in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences on June 30 at the end of a 15-year tenure as dean. The college is the UI's oldest and largest, with nearly 50 departments and programs in fine and performing arts, natural and mathematical sciences, humanities and social sciences.

“Linda has done a superb job. It's a very complex, very hardworking college,” Butler said Friday. “It's a very important position and the person has to have the enthusiasm to move it ahead. You need someone who is a consensus-builder and who can really pull those groups together in finding a direction for the college.”

Maxson also was a strong fundraiser, and the new dean needs to continue that upward trajectory for the college, Butler said.

Maxson, who was out of town Friday and not available for comment, will return to the UI faculty as a biology professor.

In a statement, she said she is proud to have hired about half of the college's current faculty, developed innovative educational programming, supported distinguished research and planned major construction and renovation projects.

“It was an opportunity for her to move on and do other things,” Butler said of the change. “It's an incredible tenure, 14 years.”

Maxson was a strong advocate for the college during lean budget years and had a vision for moving such a large and academically diverse college forward, said Helena Dettmer, associate dean in liberal arts and sciences. Maxson also backed getting more women involved in college leadership positions and was a mentor for many, Dettmer said.

“I think a successful administrator has to find resources for the college to help departments and individual faculty be successful,” Dettmer said. “This person needs to be a strong advocate for the college.”

This will be the third deanship search taking place at the UI, with searches already under way for the colleges of business and engineering.

After fall semester begins, a search committee will be appointed with input from faculty, staff and students, Butler said, with the goal of having a new dean chosen and on campus by July 1.

Here's the full release from the University of Iowa:

Linda Maxson has announced her resignation as dean of the University of Iowa College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS), effective June 30, 2012. The resignation comes at the end of Maxson's third five-year term as dean.

In a message to faculty and staff, Maxson said she is proud to have hired approximately half of the college's current faculty, developed innovative educational programming, supported distinguished research, planned the construction and renovation of major academic facilities, strengthened the college's fundraising efforts, and created new academic centers and programs, including the Division of Performing Arts and the Division of World Languages, Literatures and Cultures.

Maxson plans to continue to serve the UI as she pursues her scholarly interests, including writing a book about collegiate leadership.

A search for Maxson's replacement will begin this fall. CLAS is the university's largest and oldest college, comprising almost 50 departments and programs in the fine and performing arts, natural and mathematical sciences, humanities and social sciences.

Maxson, who holds a doctoral degree in genetics, came to the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 1997. Prior to that, she served as associate vice chancellor and dean of undergraduate academic affairs at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, and earlier was professor and head of the biology department at The Pennsylvania State University.