Williams Selected as New IU Dental Dean
Dr. John N. Williams, dean of the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Dentistry, has been named the new dean for the Indiana University School of Dentistry.
Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) Chancellor Charles R. Bantz and Dr. Uday Sukhatme, executive vice chancellor and dean of the IUPUI faculties, announced Williams’ selection on Dec. 16, 2009.
Williams had announced earlier in 2009 that he would be stepping down from his UNC-Chapel Hill leadership role, effective June 2010. A UNC-Chapel Hill search committee is currently identifying potential candidates to serve as the next dean. The tentative timeline is for initial interviews with potential candidates to take place in February 2010. Then, the committee will identify a smaller group of candidates who will be invited to campus for “intensive interviews with key constituencies,” said committee chair and UNC-Chapel Hill Gillings School of Global Public Health Dean Barbara K. Rimer.
Williams’ Indiana University appointment will be effective June 15, 2010, pending approval by the university’s trustees. Williams will replace retiring Dean Lawrence Goldblatt.
The IU School of Dentistry, located on IUPUI campus, is one of the oldest dental schools in the nation. During the 2008-2009 academic year, 698 students were pursuing seven types of degree and/or certificate programs in dental assisting, dental hygiene, dentistry and graduate dentistry. The IU School of Dentistry has 112 full-time and 126 part-time faculty members contributing to its teaching and research programs.
“Under his leadership, the School of Dentistry will continue to make a positive impact on student success and dentistry as a practice,” Sukhatme said.
Williams has served as dean of the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Dentistry since May 2005. Previously, he had served as dean of the University of Louisville School of Dentistry since 1999.
During Williams’ years as dean at UNC-Chapel Hill, the Dental Sciences Building project has moved from planning and design to formal approval and, in summer 2009, actual construction of the 216,000-square-foot building. The building is currently projected to be completed in early 2012, and it will feature state-of-the-art collaborative research laboratory space, educational space and administrative offices. The creation of the building also will enable the School of Dentistry to increase its DDS class size to a capacity of up to 100.
