The Office of the Provost has appointed interim Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Ellen Herman to the role permanently as a half-time position.

Herman, a history professor, will continue in her role as co-director of the Wayne Morse Center for Law and Politics.

The position was conceived as a full-time post focusing on promotion and tenure as well as program review and other components of faculty success. However, Provost Jayanth Banavar decided to split it into two half-time positions to accommodate faculty members who want to engage in administrative work while also remaining focused on research and teaching.

Herman’s role in the Office of the Provost will be to manage central promotion and tenure efforts, including identifying process and system improvements.

“Ellen has been a tremendous asset for us during her interim appointment,” said Scott Pratt, executive vice provost for academic affairs. “We are truly thrilled that she will continue her work with us in an area that requires special talent and a passion for excellence in academia.”

A search will launch soon for a half-time associate vice provost for academic affairs who will focus on the other half of the original job, including academic program review. The position is expected to be posted soon and will be an internal search, open to associate or full professors.

“This approach will create an opportunity for us to foster administrative experience in our faculty without impacting their ability to engage in research and teaching,” Pratt said. “We are also committed to working with the selected candidate’s department to ensure that performing this role will not lengthen their path toward promotion.”

Reporting to Pratt, the second position will focus on program review and faculty success initiatives, as well as other provost reporting units, such as the Center for Latino/a and Latin American Studies and the Labor Education and Research Center.

“As the academic year winds down, we wanted to make sure interested associate or full professors were aware of the opening and could keep an eye out for the formal posting,” Pratt said. “We expect that to happen very soon and look forward to a strong pool of candidates.”