By Jesse Dolojan, Staff Writer
On July 1, Dr. Florenz Plassman will join Xavier University as the new Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
The previous Dean, Dr. David Mengel, left his position at Xavier to be the dean for the University of Portland on July 1, 2023.
Plassman previously served as the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Ohio University (OU) before switching to Xavier. He saw a three percent increase in enrollment in the College of Arts and Sciences at OU during a time when College of Arts and Sciences enrollment dropped nationally. Plassman holds a PhD in economics and served as a professor of economics and political science at OU.
Plassman was initially attracted to Xavier because of the university’s identity as a liberal arts school.
“I look at a Jesuit education sort of as the ideal framework of the liberal arts embedded within a framework of spiritual guidance,” Plassman said. “When I got the opportunity to interview I was thrilled when I got the opportunity to visit the campus. I was more than thrilled when I got an offer. I was super excited. I was dancing.”
Associate Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Dr. Stephen Yandell believes that having someone with an outside perspective on Xavier will allow for new approaches and ideas to be introduced.
“Xavier has been around for a century plus, so we benefit from having a chance to think outside how we’ve always done things… and we know that some of the challenges that Xavier is going through, that universities are going through nationwide, are ones that Dr. Plassman has tackled before,” Yandell said.
In addition to Yandell, Xavier elected two other acting associate deans between the departure of Mengel and hiring Plassman, Dena Morton and Tim Brownlee.
“We have been functioning as the dean, so this includes things like getting courses scheduled, working with the chairs of the various departments in our college, helping support faculty with development money and travel funds. We run committees related to assessment and curriculum, diversity and inclusion,” Yandell said. “Between the three of us we’ve been doing all of those tasks and providing support for the different chairs.”
Sophomore English, French and Digital Innovation Film and Television (DIFT) triple major Tricia Barker said that she would love to see some departments in the College of Arts and Sciences receive more support, specifically the DIFT program.
“I think it would be exciting to lend more resources to the DIFT program, to invest in more equipment and emerging technologies to best prepare DIFT students for the quickly developing technological environment outside of the classroom,” Barker said.
Plassman believes that Xavier students are what sets it apart from other universities in Ohio.
“Xavier attracts a different type of student, a different type of student who is really, I think, open and more interested in what the liberal arts have to offer,” Plassman said.
He stressed how excited he is to arrive at Xavier and begin working with faculty and meeting students.
“I think on my first day I am just going to walk around on campus in complete amazement that I finally arrived,” Plassman said. “When students come back, I will find ways of engaging with students. I still don’t know how much time I will have to possibly teach a class or be involved in learning communities, but it would be awesome if my role as dean left some opportunities for that.”
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