After a nationwide search, Margaret Kennedy-Dygas was named the College of Fine Arts dean on Friday.
She will succeed Interim Dean Madeleine Scott on May 20. Scott’s 2012-2013 salary is $143,000.
Kennedy-Dygas, who is currently an associate dean in the College of the Arts and professor of music at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, said in a news release that she was “thrilled to be joining the team at OU.”
“(I look forward to) expand the creative culture that they have established so successfully in Athens,” she said.
Executive Vice President and Provost Pam Benoit said, in the release, that Kennedy-Dygas is a passionate advocate for the arts and for the role that creative activity plays in the life of a university.
“She also has a track record as a creative administrator who has formed successful partnerships with faculty on issues that matter when it comes to creating a supportive environment for fine arts and arts education,” Benoit said.
In the release, Kennedy-Dygas said her highest priority as dean will be “nurturing excellence” and “connecting the creative geniuses” in the college with the needs of people in Southeast Ohio and beyond.
In a previous Post article, Kennedy-Dygas cited her teaching experience as beneficial when making budget decisions and said she believes it would be a valuable skill when overseeing OU’s Responsibility Centered Management budget transition.
“I know what life is like in the trenches, and I have taught courses and so on in my present position,” Kennedy-Dygas said. “I have a sense of what students go through, and the last few years have been such a huge challenge, and we’re not seeing the end of it yet.”
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