Greg Shepherd, director of the Ohio University School of Communication Studies, will serve a one-year term as the interim dean of the College of Communication beginning Fall Quarter.
Shepherd steps in for interim provost Kathy Krendl, who served as the dean of the College of Communication since 1996.
E.W. Scripps School of Journalism director Tom Hodson and Director of Communication and Development Studies in the School of Telecommunications David Mould also interviewed for the position, OU spokesman Jack Jeffery said.
Shepherd will make $120,000 this upcoming year, up from the $87,169 he made last year as the communication studies director. Krendl made $156,886 last year as College of Communication dean.
Getting the position is an honor, Shepherd said, because the college attracts really good students. He added that he was looking forward to the challenge of acting as the dean, as well as working with the man who hired him, new OU President Roderick McDavis.
The director of the School of Communication Studies since 2001, Shepherd previously served as an assistant professor at the University of Iowa from 1983 to 1989 and an assistant and associate professor at the University of Kansas from 1989 to 2001.
He received a doctorate in speech communication from the University of Illinois, a master's degree in speech communication from Pennsylvania State University and a bachelor's degree in speech communication from the University of Minnesota.
An interim director of the School of Communication Studies will be named by the beginning of the school year, Jeffery said.
Shepherd said he is prepared to potentially go through the de-tenuring process with former School of Visual Communication director and current professor Larry Nighswander, although the situation was not discussed during the interview process.
Nighswander and OU are co-defendants in a civil suit levied by former OU student Becky Humes, who accused Nighswander of sexual harassment during a Sept. 2002 photo shoot.
The university is attempting to secure Nighswander's resignation before the beginning of the school year, OU Director of Legal Affairs John Burns has said in previous weeks.
If unsuccessful, OU can attempt to remove Nighswander's tenure, a complicated process that would involve both Shepherd and Krendl making recommendations to the president, who could order a dismissal hearing to be heard by third-year faculty senate members.
That body would then make a recommendation to the board of trustees, who would have the ultimate say on the matter.
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