Messenger - Vol. 1, No. 1, Page 9 Fall 1991 New provost, six new deans help direct Delaware's academic life A new provost and six new deans are helping guide academic life at the University this fall. Four newly-named academic administrators will join three other deans who assumed office last year. Mary P. Richards, formerly dean of liberal arts at Auburn University, was named dean of the College of Arts and Science; John C. Nye, previously head of the Agricultural Engineering Department at Louisiana State University in Baton Rouge, was named dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences; and Costel D. Denson, professor of chemical engineering at the University since 1977, was appointed interim dean of the College of Engineering. Denson replaces R. Byron Pipes, who has been named provost and vice president for academic affairs. Two other new deans took office last fall, and a third was named in the spring. D. Allan Waterfield is dean of the College of Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation, and Kenneth R. Biederman heads the College of Business and Economics. Daniel Rich was named dean of the College of Urban Affairs and Public Policy in March. Richards, who will direct the largest of the University's 10 colleges, is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate with English honors from Southern Methodist University. She holds master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has been widely acclaimed for her work in Old English literature and law. Richards will hold the rank of professor in the University's Department of English. She replaces Helen Gouldner, who retired after 17 years service. Nye replaces Donald F. Crossan, who was dean of the College of Agricultural Sciences since 1977. The new dean's research background has focused on environmental areas, including animal waste management and treatment of pesticide-contaminated water. Nye received his master's and doctoral degrees from Purdue University, where he served on the faculty for 13 years and received three outstanding teacher awards. Since joining the faculty of the College of Engineering, Denson has been responsible for establishing and supervising graduate research programs in polymer processing and developing and teaching courses at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. He holds a doctorate in chemical engineering from the University of Utah, and, before coming to Delaware, he was manager of polymer research and development in major appliance business at the General Electric Co. Pipes, who assumed the duties of provost in July, joined the Delaware faculty in 1974 and was co-founder of the Center for Composite Materials within the College of Engineering. This center, which Pipes directed from 1978 until his appointment as dean in 1985, has become a model program of University/ industry cooperation. During his tenure as dean, Pipes also was instrumental in establishing two additional research centers, the Delaware Transportation Center and the Center for Applied Coastal Research, and in creating a five-year plan for the college that emphasized the growth of the graduate program, enhancement of faculty teaching and the creation of a faculty development program. Before coming to the University's College of Physical Education, Athletics and Recreation, Waterfield was dean of the School of Health Sciences at West Chester University. He holds a Ph.D. from Ohio State. Waterfield succeeded David M. Nelson, who was dean for nine years and athletic director from 1951-84. Formerly New Jersey state treasurer and a staff economist for the U.S. Senate Budget Committee, Biederman holds a doctoral degree in economics from Purdue University. Before assuming the deanship of the College of Business and Economics, he was co-owner and managing director of U.S. Lender Services Inc. in Houston. Biederman replaced acting dean Larry M. Donnelley. Rich, who joined the Delaware faculty in 1970, serves as senior research associate with the Center for Energy and Urban Policy Research at the University. Recipient of an excellence-in-teaching award in 1986, Rich has written numerous articles on energy and public policy and is co-editor of Energy Policy Studies. He holds a doctorate in political science from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.