Liberal Arts dean finalists: Third in a series
Jennifer Rathbun presented her vision for the College of Liberal Arts on Tuesday during an interview process for the dean position.
Currently, Rathbun serves as the interim chair of the department of Philosophy and Religious Studies at Ball State University, a role held since 2022, while also fulfilling the position of chair of the department of Modern Languages and Classics since 2021.
Prior to these appointments, she served as chair of the department of Foreign Languages at Ashland University from 2011 to 2018.
Rathbun’s educational background includes a doctorate in Spanish from the University of Arizona. She also earned a master’s degree in Spanish and a bachelor’s degree in Spanish and psychology from Wichita State University.
“We are the largest, most diverse college on campus,” Rathbun told the faculty and staff gathered in the Student Academic Center. “… I’m an outsider to the institution. I’m not privy to the internal documents. I’ve not seen a college strategic plan. But what I have seen standing here today is that one of my principal jobs as an incoming dean would be to listen, get to know you in your academic departments, the culture, your communities, and your documents.”
One of her top priorities for the growth of the college is to focus on academic excellence.
“I would say we already have high-quality academic programs and we’re going to continue to build upon those programs and build upon the critical momentum that you already created here at UTRGV,” Rathbun said. “How? by investment in excellence and innovation. … We’re investing in academic excellence, which is an investment in our students. It raises an entire institution.”
She said it is important to help students understand how their degrees will help them in their future and that success and accessibility is a key component for students.
As Rathbun toured the Edinburg campus during her visit, she spoke with a student about the textbooks in his classes.
“We need to take a look at the type of textbooks that we’re offering in our classes,” she said. “… He confirmed for me, word of mouth gets around. If a class has textbooks that cost a lot of money, students don’t enroll in it. … Our students come from Pell-eligible families, they come from low-income families. … So, again, we have an ethical responsibility, and it’s incredible the difference that having access to materials can make from day one.”
If selected, Rathbun plans to collaborate with different companies and organizations.
“Plans for future growth involve partnership development because effective partnerships development both within and outside of the institution fills valuable networks that benefit students [and] faculty,” she said. “… We can create meaningful collaboration that enhance educational experiences, provide career opportunities and address community needs.”
Peter-James Ehimika, director of Student Success Initiatives at UTRGV, asked about her greatest contribution towards students’ success in her current job and what strategies she would implement to ensure student success remains a top priority in the classroom.
Rathbun replied that students will be at the front of all decisions made regarding the college.
“I would support initiatives, any and all initiatives that contribute to student success and align strategic spending with student success,” she said. “… This would also include things such as … investing in research, investing in the creation of new programs, nurturing current programs. This is [a] very broad-based question but is at the heart of absolutely everything we do.”
Rathbun said her greatest contribution toward students’ success in her current job was to make faculty replace textbooks with free online materials or textbooks that cost less than $40.
“We don’t need students to pay $300 to access a supersite to take an exam online,” she said. “There’s plenty of materials available online. We’ve got the internet at our fingertips. … We don’t need to ask our students to make that type of investment.”
José Dávila-Montes has been interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts since June 1.
Before Davila-Montes, Walter Diaz served as the founding dean for the CLA for nine years.
On Feb. 29, Luis H. Zayas, provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs, announced Diaz’s “intention to step down” as a dean and return to faculty.
Zayas sent a message to the UTRGV community on April 16 stating he was going to initiate “a national search to identify the next Dean for the College of Liberal Arts.”
He told The Rider in a phone interview Nov. 5 that after all the presentations are done, he will meet with the search committee.
“We talk over the finalists and, at that point, it’s up to me to make the selection,” Zayas said. “Typically, the committee provides me with their impressions and advice and then I … consult it with the president on the decision I’m about to make.”
He hopes to have an announcement on the new dean of the College of Liberal Arts by early 2025.
“I would like to have someone in place by next summer so that they can have the summertime to prepare before everybody gets back,” he replied when asked when the selected candidate will officially assume the position of dean.
