Dean of the College Biron to Return to Research, Teaching

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Interim Provost Kotz: We are grateful for all that Rebecca Biron has accomplished.

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Dean of the College Rebecca Biron has decided to return to full-time research and teaching at the end of the academic year, Interim Provost David Kotz ’86 announced today.

Biron will have served three years as Dartmouth’s senior officer responsible for undergraduate academic and co-curricular life. A professor of Spanish and comparative literature and a Dartmouth faculty member since 2006, Biron has overseen the work of the Division of Student Affairs.

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Rebecca Biron
Rebecca Biron, a professor of Spanish and comparative literature, will resume teaching and research at the end of the academic year.
In addition to providing direction on a broad range of student experiences on campus, she has been involved in strategic planning for admissions and financial aid and for student inclusivity and diversity issues. Biron has led a number of major College initiatives, including implementation of the two-year-old residential house community system, co-chairing the Enrollment Task Force, and co-chairing the Inclusive Excellence Initiative working group on students.

Biron has served as a member of the president’s and provost’s leadership teams and is the College’s representative to the Consortium on Financing Higher Education, also known as COFHE.

“During her tenure as dean, Rebecca has been particularly focused on promoting student success in the context of the College’s mission to educate the most promising students for a lifetime of learning and responsible leadership,” wrote Kotz in an email today to members of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences announcing Biron’s return to teaching and research. “She will continue to advance that goal in the classroom and beyond as she resumes her teacher-scholar role at Dartmouth.”

Kotz will appoint a faculty member to serve as interim dean of the College, beginning this summer. In his email, Kotz wrote that he expects to communicate with the campus community early in spring term about the process for appointing Biron’s successor.

“I look forward to continuing to work closely with Rebecca and her team in the months ahead,” says Kotz. “We are grateful for all that Rebecca has accomplished. I know I speak for colleagues across campus when I say it has been a great pleasure to work with Rebecca during her time as dean.”

Biron says she’s proud of the work her team has done to better integrate the College’s educational mission into student life.

“The work of the dean of the College office is essential to Dartmouth’s mission. I’ve been humbled by the tremendous dedication and expertise that our student affairs staff apply to nurturing students during their journey through college. I’m thankful for them and for all we’ve accomplished together,” she says.

And, Biron says, she’s looking forward to returning to the classroom and her research.

“Working directly with students in courses and research is by far the most rewarding part of my professional life. I’m excited to be focusing on that this fall,” Biron says.

Susan Boutwell can be reached at susan.j.boutwell@dartmouth.edu.

Susan J. Boutwell