Dr. Wali Kharif, Chair Associate Dean Search Committee, College of ...

Dr. Wali Kharif, Chair
Associate Dean Search Committee, College of Arts and Sciences
Department of History
Box 5064
Tennessee Tech University
Cookeville, TN 38505
Oct. 6, 2011
Dear Dr. Kharif, and members of the Associate Dean Search Committee:
I am applying for the position of associate dean in the College of Arts and Sciences. As a
faculty member at Tennessee Tech since 1990, including five years as chair of the Department
of English and Communications, and the most recent four-plus years as interim associate dean
of the college, I believe I have developed the necessary skills and understanding to continue
serving the students and faculty of the college effectively.
The qualifications and duties listed in the advertised job description closely match the work I
have been doing in my interim role, but perhaps the primary qualification for an associate dean
is an ability to work with the dean in a supportive and complementary way, enabling the college
to fulfill its mission within the university. I think the same principle of complementarity has
defined my working relationship with Dean Semmes as he enjoyed while associate dean under
Dean Armistead, though we have reconfigured the responsibilities of the position. Much of my
time is given to tasks such as approving forms for students, faculty, and staff, but Dean
Semmes regularly consults me in making larger decisions and setting priorities for the college.
My experience as a department chair and background as a professor of English enables me, I
think, to offer perspectives that are helpful to him in leading the diverse array of programs and
faculty housed in Arts and Sciences.
When I decided in 2002 to accept the job as interim chair of English (as the department was
then called), I had come to recognize that while teaching is the core activity of an institution of
higher learning, effective administration sustains the conditions necessary for the success of
faculty and students. Having served as adviser for the English graduate program, as chair I
became more familiar with the advising needs of undergraduate students, including the many
students who take the department's general education courses. This experience has been quite
useful in my current duty supervising the university's General Education curriculum. I work
closely with Ms. Edith Duvier, director of our Student Success Center, and have learned a great
deal from Ms. Duvier and her staff in dealing with at-risk students and other advising challenges,
which is helpful in evaluating the requests for readmission after suspension that I review on
behalf of the dean.
As department chair I learned to set priorities for utilizing the many accounts that support
departmental activities and scholarships, working with major donors and the Development office
to craft and revise scholarship and unrestricted accounts to meet the needs of students, and to
make sure faculty offices and classrooms had regular technology upgrades. In moving to the
dean's office in 2007 a big challenge for me was learning how accounts work in far more detail
than I needed to know as chair. The associate dean oversees the many departmental,
personnel, and endowment accounts in the college, and works with each unit to make sure that
resources match needs as closely as possible. Careful management of such resources is
necessary to meet other needs, predictable and unforeseen, around the college. I have

developed a sense of the pace of spending needs over the course of the fiscal year, and how to
manage resources strategically to meet our immediate needs in a way that maintains the longterm
financial stability of the college. Each spring, in consultation with the dean, I revise the
personnel budget in the college to reflect changes planned for the following year, and assist him
each summer in assessing available resources and setting priorities for faculty searches.
As chair of the committee overseeing the Center Stage program (POC), I manage a $300,000
budget for cultural programming with the primary goal of expanding our students' intellectual
and artistic horizons, while enhancing their awareness of cultural differences and diversity. As
chair of the POC, following Dr. Armistead's initial proposal, I drafted and guided toward approval
a new campus policy on freedom of expression that helps shield events and presentations that
have value but might be controversial and provocative. Encouraging diversity of thought and
challenging received ideas is a key role for a university. Though no longer directly involved in
hiring as I was while a chairperson, I do, when needed, assist and advise department chairs in
following search procedures and affirmative action guidelines that help ensure a diverse pool of
applicants for each new hire.
Though the dean leads the college and sets its priorities and goals, the associate dean often
works behind the scenes to troubleshoot more specific problems, almost always in
collaboration with other offices on campus. When problems arise it is crucial to have a relation
of trust with other offices to get those problems fixed. During my years at TTU, especially in the
past nine as department chair and associate dean, I believe I have developed a reputation as a
reliable administrator and committee chair or member. I strive in particular to work well with the
clerical staff in the college and other offices around campus, without whose cooperation the
college could not function.
Finally, though not a required part of the job, maintaining an active teaching and scholarly life
helps me keep in touch with the primary values and work of the university. In the past four
years I have regularly taught literature courses, supervised a master's thesis, published several
papers and book reviews in peer-reviewed journals, organized a conference program in New
York, and held the office of vice president and, starting in January, president of the Eugene
O'Neill Society, while continuing in my role as book review editor of The Eugene O'Neill Review.
My new role on campus as Executive Director for Academic Affairs of the learning villages
program enables me to help lead a major new venture in the effort to improve student retention,
and more important, to improve the quality of academic life generally for students at Tennessee
Tech.
In sum, I have spent the past four-plus years helping to shape the role of associate dean of Arts
and Sciences into its current form, and hope to continue in that role under Dean Semmes's
capable leadership. I look forward to hearing from you as the committee proceeds with the
search.
Sincerely,
Kurt Eisen
Interim Associate Dean
Professor of English