Lamm Appoints Acting Academic VP

Wurzweiler Dean to Assume New Duties

President Norman Lamm has named Dr. Sheldon Gelman, the dean of the Wurzweiler School of Social Work, as the interim Vice-President for Academic Affairs effective July 1.

Gelman will serve as the chief academic administrator of YU during the search to find a permanent replacement for Dr. William Schwartz, who resigned his position after serving as Academic VP for nearly five years. During his interim vice-presidency, Gelman will continue in his post as dean of the social work school, a position he has held since 1990.

In his comments concerning the new appointment to acting VP, Lamm said "Sheldon Gelman is an outstanding administrator as well as a respected scholar. Under his leadership, Wurzweiler has grown and flourished. We are indeed fortunate that he has agreed to serve the broader University community during this time of transition."

"Dr. Lamm asked me to assume the position of interim vice-president until the formal search for an individual to fill the position on a permanent basis could be completed," said Gelman. "I welcome this new challenge. It is an honor to be able to serve the University in this larger capacity and I look forward to working with the other deans and administrators."

Gelman explained that his duties "will not just consist of merely opening the mail. I will be performing the role of academic advocate for the entire university, and will support and help other deans in whatever situations or needs may arise." As an interim VP, Gelman said he would not undertake any major new initiatives such as attempting to create a new school or supervising a full scale assessment of any of the University's divisions, but rather he hoped to administer the office in a manner that would deal with all matters on the current agenda and lay the groundwork for any future work that may be needed. He specifically mentioned the upcoming Ten-Year Middle States Review, an accreditation inspection of the entire university, which is scheduled to take place in the year 2001. "We will begin the preliminary reports and paperwork," said Gelman, "These things are extremely large and take massive amounts of preparation beforehand."

Gelman singled out other issues in the realm of academic affair for attention as well. The Executive Council, an inordinately large administrative body widely viewed by many in the University as ineffectual and unwieldy, was mentioned by Gelman as something he would like to possibly change or modify. A proposal to "split the Council into multiple bodies" was to be looked at, said the new interim VP.

He also indicated that his oversight of academic issues would heavily involve academic input from faculty and other deans. As to how he planned on being able to carry out his duties as both dean and vice-president, Gelman said he would be able to do this because he can "rely upon our outstanding deans and dedicated administrators at Wurzweiler and throughout the University to assure that business in conducted smoothly."

While the Office of Academic Affairs officially has purview over the entire YU, Gelman pointed out that his duties will not include matters concerning AECOM or RIETS, each of which have their own respective vice-presidents, Dr. Dominick Purpura and Rabbi Robert Hirt. Nor will his new position involve the high schools, said Gelman for "that would be a full-time job in of itself."

When asked by The Commentator as to whether he saw himself as a candidate for the permanent position of Academic VP, Gelman replied "I don't know." He also expressed his ambivalence about even desiring the job, saying "It is an extremely complex position that I am unsure I would even want."

Gelman is a graduate of the University of Pittsburgh, where he earned his MSW, while his PH.D. he received at the Florence Heller Graduate School at Brandeis University. While on sabbatical in 1978, Gelman earned a Master of Law degree from Yale University, because he felt "it would aid my research and studies in the areas I was interested in."

Dr. Gelman has conducted research and published articles in topics related to social policy, liability issues in non-profit organizations, human service delivery systems, developmental disabilities, ethics, and child abuse. He is a Fellow of the American Association on Mental Retardation, and recently completed a three-year term on the Commission on Accreditation of the Council on Social Work Education. Gelman was also recently elected to the position of Vice-President of the National Association of Social Work Deans.

While not identifying himself as an Orthodox Jew, Gelman was raised in an Orthodox household, and he said that he does not feel that his religious orientation will hinder him in performing his vice-presidential duties. "My qualifications are as an administrator, dean, scholar and academic in my areas of interest. I am not someone who will come in and begin to wear a yarmulke just because my title has changed. I am aware and respectful of the environment in which we exist, and I am very cognizant of that [environment]. I hope to have good relations with everyone in the university."

Gelman indicated that he expected his interim position to last from July 1998, until a permanent replacement would be found, hopefully by June 1999. "The search is a long and arduous process that every university goes through," he said. "On a daily basis, there are hundreds of universities searching everywhere for qualified academics and administrators. That is part of the reason why schools hire headhunters [executive search firms] to find candidates."

Gelman summed up his duties and aspirations by saying, "My overall goal? To make sure that the academic needs of our students and faculty are met."