COE Dean Sally White to join College of Notre Dame of Maryland

	Sally A. White

Sally A. White, dean of the College of Education, has been named vice president for academic affairs and dean of the faculty at College of Notre Dame of Maryland. She will also be a professor in their psychology department and assume the role on Sept. 10.

White served as dean and professor at Lehigh for six years and is currently on sabbatical leave. Gary Lutz, who has served as interim dean of the College of Education since May 1, will continue his effective leadership of the college through the 2007-08 academic year.

“Sally is an innovative leader who helped to promote the reputation of Lehigh’s College of Education,” says Lehigh President Alice P. Gast. “She has made significant contributions to the Lehigh community and has raised the visibility of the college for the past six years.”

“We thank Sally for her commitment to Lehigh over the years and we wish her the best at College of Notre Dame,” she adds.

Sally served Lehigh and the College of Education with distinction over the past six years,” says Lehigh Provost Mohamed El-Aasser. “I have enjoyed working with her as a valued colleague. We wish her all the best in her new position at College of Notre Dame.”

White is an accomplished scholar in the area of achievement motivation theory, has served on many Lehigh Valley community boards and was recently appointed to the executive board of the Council of Academic Deans for Research Education Institutions. She secured a $2.25 million gift to establish the college’s first-ever endowed chair to lead the Center for Urban Leadership, which was chartered last spring.

Under her stewardship, the college introduced its popular Distinguished Lecture Series, expanded the number of tenure track faculty and started the Center for Promoting Research to Practice. The college has also gained international stature while White was dean; the college currently enrolls more than 200 students representing 58 countries.

College of Notre Dame of Maryland is a liberal arts college in Baltimore, with a focus on educating women in the sciences. It was the first Catholic college for women to award a four-year baccalaureate degree and will launch a School of Pharmacy in 2008, the first one ever associated with a women’s college in the United States.

“Dr. Sally White is committed to our mission to educate students who can contribute to society and the world to bring about positive change,” says Mary Pat Seurkamp, president of College of Notre Dame of Maryland. “She brings significant experience and an entrepreneurial approach as an academic administrator and faculty member.”

In her new role, White will play an instrumental role in the college’s strategic planning; development of academic programs, policies and procedures; outcomes assessment; faculty relations and development; and budgeting and fiscal decision-making.

“The last six years at Lehigh have been exciting times for me professionally and I am proud to have served as dean,” says White. “The college has gifted faculty and students, and it’s been a rewarding experience to work with some of the most highly respected researchers in the country.”

“I am thrilled to be joining the administrative team and faculty at College of Notre Dame,” she adds. “On my several visits to the campus, I was struck by the dedication of the faculty to student learning both in the classroom and in co-curricular activities. As a result, the students are excited and serious about their education and feel connected to the institution.”

White will be making a return trip to the greater Baltimore area. Before coming to Lehigh, she was a senior e-solutions consultant for RWD Technologies in Columbia, Maryland and served as dean of the graduate school and associate vice president for research at Towson University—located just outside Baltimore. Previously, she held administrative and teaching positions at Illinois State University and the University of New Hampshire.

--Tom Yencho