After 15 years as dean of the Iowa State University College of Design, Mark C. Engelbrecht, FAIA, will step down from his post in June 2009. A professor of architecture, he assumed leadership of the college in 1994.

 

As dean, Engelbrecht has overseen development of the Core Design Program uniting all first-year students in a common curriculum, and successful fund-raising efforts to construct the Karol J. and Lila Furman Kocimski Auditorium, three new art studios, critique spaces within the college, and the current construction of the King Pavilion. He also helped found the Center for Town/Craft in Perry, and helped develop the partnership with Sioux City that resulted in the ISU Design West Studio facility there.

 

 

A 14-member committee is conducting the search for the new dean of the College of Design. The search committee is chaired by Michael Whiteford, dean of the ISU College of Liberal Arts and Sciences. The committee's goal is to name a new dean by the end of spring semester 2009.

 

 

The university has engaged the services of Auerbach Associates, a professional search firm, to facilitate finding a successor. The position will be advertised nationally beginning in mid-September 2008.

 

The search committee hosted three open forums to seek input from College of Design faculty, staff and students on the future direction of the college and the position description for a new dean. Each forum followed the same format, and comments from the previous session(s) were posted at subsequent sessions. Dates, times and locations were selected to allow the greatest number of people to participate.

At these assemblies, discussion focused on answering the following four questions:

Those unable to attend one of the three forums, who felt that something was not adequately addressed at the session they attended or who simply had additional thoughts to share were encouraged to submit their comments via a drop box available in the Dean's Office.

 

Responses from the forums as well as submitted comments have been compiled into a document available for download here.

 

These responses were used to finalize the job advertisement and the long position description, which will be provided to prospective candidates.