Alan Artibise steps into executive dean role

Liberal Arts & Sciences is second college to use new management model

Alan Artibise is a man who pays attention to details, enjoys solving complex problems and is prepared to make difficult decisions — attributes he will need in his new role as executive dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. Artibise will assist the new ASU vice president and dean of the college, Quentin Wheeler, in making sure the university’s largest and most complex college runs smoothly and serves students with courses and degree programs that range from foundational to transformational.

“The heart of any university is liberal arts and sciences — English, mathematics, humanities, science and social sciences,” Artibise says. “Our college’s contribution to a student’s education often is providing the foundation for future success, which can be measured in retention and in graduation rates. Our focus will be serving our students and their educational needs.”

In this newly created position, Artibise will be responsible for the staff and financial management of the college, “allowing the faculty and the dean to do their jobs well without having to worry about day-to-day issues,” he says. One of his first priorities will be addressing the burgeoning need for classroom and laboratory space.

“The size of the college and the necessity of managing seats in classes and enrollment required this new office, and Alan’s skills are perfect for this,” notes Elizabeth D. Capaldi, executive vice president and university provost.

Wheeler expands on that notion. “This new position will play a pivotal role on our team in the dean’s office, providing professional and imaginative problem-solving for such diverse challenges as managing enrollments, budgets, and research and teaching space for the largest academic unit at ASU.

“Dean Artibise brings a wealth of administrative experience and knowledge to his new position. On a flowchart, the division of labor is between leadership and management, but Alan and I both believe in teamwork and envision working together, and with the entire staff of the dean’s office, to achieve excellence across the board,” Wheeler says.

This new management model mirrors one put in place last year at the Ira A. Fulton School of Engineering when Paul Johnson was named executive dean. “It’s an exclusive club,” quips Artibise. “There are only the two of us at ASU in this position.”

Artibise was appointed executive dean in December. He will continue to also serve in his previous role as dean of the Division of Social Sciences until a replacement is named. And, he also will continue as the executive director of ASU’s Institute for Social Science Research.

Artibise joined ASU in 2004 from the University of News Orleans, where he had been dean of the College of Urban and Public Affairs. Trained as a political scientist and urban historian, Artibise also is a certified planner and recognized expert in North American urban development. He earned his Ph.D. in urban history from the University of British Columbia and bachelor’s degrees in history and political science from the University of Manitoba.

In previous positions, Artibise has been a professor and administrator at several other North American universities including the University of Missouri-St. Louis and the universities of British Columbia, Winnipeg, Victoria and Manitoba. He has chaired a multidisciplinary social and behavioral sciences department, taught in a traditional history department, worked as a professional historian at the Canadian Museum of Civilization in Ottawa, and served as executive director for a number of research and public policy centers and institutes.

Artibise has lived and worked in several of North America’s most diverse and interesting cities and has undertaken research and consulting in Thailand, China, Columbia, the Czech Republic and Mexico.

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is ASU's largest and most diverse college, with 30 schools, departments and programs and more than 20 research centers and institutes. With some 13,000 undergraduate students, nearly 3,000 graduate students and 725 tenured/tenure track faculty, the college offers more than 100 degrees in its three divisions: humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences and mathematics. The college's nearly 82,000 alumni throughout the world are making untold civic, economic, scientific and social contributions.

Carol Hughes, carol.hughes@asu.edu

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