Danny Anderson named interim provost

Administrator to replace Steinmetz, who will take post at Ohio State

Chancellor Robert Hemenway has named Danny J. Anderson, vice provost for academic affairs, to serve as interim provost effective July 1 and through the 2009-10 academic year.

Anderson replaces Joseph Steinmetz, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, who in the spring semester had been asked to serve as interim provost. Steinmetz has accepted a new position as executive dean and vice provost of arts and sciences at Ohio State University. Greg Simpson, chair of psychology, earlier this month was named interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences effective July 1.

“We congratulate Joe on his selection by Ohio State,” Hemenway said. “We are extremely fortunate to have someone with Danny’s leadership and experience to be our interim provost.

“With Danny’s 20-year track record as department chair, associate dean and vice provost, I know he will provide great continuity on core academic matters during this time of transition as well as lend tremendous assistance to our next chancellor.”

Anderson will work with Hemenway and Provost Richard Lariviere on transition issues. On June 30, both Hemenway and Lariviere will step down; Hemenway, concluding a 14-year tenure as chancellor, and Lariviere to assume the presidency of the University of Oregon.

“Danny has earned the confidence and admiration of faculty and administrators throughout the university and the Board of Regents,” said Lariviere. “He has been centrally engaged in our innovative Jayhawk Generations tuition scholarship program as well as academic program reviews. He brings to the table a firm grasp of the university’s academic mission, a broad vision and institutional knowledge.”

“I look forward to working closely with our faculty, the deans and the vice provosts and of course our incoming chancellor,” said Anderson. “Although there are challenges, it is also an exciting time for the university, and I am confident that with our collective talents and experience the university will take advantage of the tremendous opportunities that lie ahead.”

As vice provost for academic affairs, Anderson has been instrumental in development of the Jayhawk Generations Scholarship, which was adopted by the regents and the Kansas Legislature this spring. He has had central involvement in planning for KU’s legislative agenda and tuition proposals. He also has been in close collaboration with university governance and has played a major role in preparing the Lawrence campus for budget reductions instituted by the 2009 Legislature.

Anderson is a prize-winning teacher whose integration of service learning into the classroom frequently serves as a model for KU’s Center for Teaching Excellence. He has received a number of awards and fellowships, including a National Endowment for the Humanities Fellowship for University Teachers in 1995; a W.T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence in 2004; and the ING Award for Teaching Excellence in 2008. He is the editor of two books and has published more than 20 articles, essays and chapters in books.

Assisting Anderson in the provost’s office during the coming year will be Don Steeples, senior vice provost; Mary Lee Hummert, vice provost for faculty development; Diane Goddard, vice provost for finance; Marlesa Roney, vice provost for student success; Denise Stephens, vice provost for information services and chief information officer; Steve Warren, vice provost for research and graduate studies; and Fred Rodriguez, interim associate vice provost for diversity and equity.

Anderson began his academic career in 1985 at the University of Texas-Austin, after earning his doctorate in Spanish from KU. He joined KU in 1988 as an assistant professor in Spanish and was named a full professor in 2003. He has held successively responsible administrative positions, including chair of the Department of Spanish and Portuguese in 2000, associate dean in the College for interdisciplinary programs and area studies centers in 2005 and vice provost for academic affairs in 2008.