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.