Summer 2002
Frawley Selected New Dean of Columbian College
Folkerts Returns to SMPA
William Frawley will be the new dean of the Columbian
College of Arts and Sciences (CCAS) effective July 1. Frawley is leaving
his post as the faculty director for academic programs and planning
at the University of Delaware. A professor in linguistics, Frawley oversaw
the revamping of the core requirements for the College of Arts and Sciences.
Prior to this position, he was the linguistics department chair and
director of the cognitive science program.
“It is with great enthusiasm that I welcome Dr. Frawley as the
dean of arts and sciences,” says GW President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg.
“His keen interest in the position, linked with his well balanced
experience as a faculty member and academic administrator, brings to
us the spectrum of experience that I seek in a new dean. I expect that
Dr. Frawley will be a strong leader, as well as a solid manager, for
the academic well being of the Columbian College.”
After a successful year as interim dean of CCAS, Jean Folkerts will
resume her role as director of the School of Media and Public Affairs.
“I am extremely pleased that Dr. Frawley has accepted GW’s
offer to become dean of the Columbian College of Arts and Sciences,”
says Donald R. Lehman, vice president for academic affairs. “Dr.
Frawley brings to GW excellent credentials through his research and
scholarship, as well as his teaching.”
As the faculty director for academic programs and planning, Frawley
established 36 living-learning communities for freshmen. Students in
these communities exceed their predicted GPA, adopt a major at twice
the rate of other freshmen, and report confidence to engage in academic
discourse and more involvement in the university as a whole.
“I am very excited and honored to work at one of the premier institutions
in the world,” says Frawley. “GW has top faculty and students,
and very smart and progressive
leadership.”
Frawley has a number of research projects in progress including the
second edition of the “Oxford International Encyclopedia of Linguistics,”
the major reference work in the field, of which he is the editor in
chief. He also co-edited a book on dictionaries of the American Indian
languages.
Frawley holds a BA in English from Rowan University, formerly Glassboro
State College. He later received his MA in linguistics from Louisiana
State University and a PhD in Linguistics from Northwestern University.
The Columbian College of Arts and Sciences, the largest of the University’s
nine schools, provides education and training leading to undergraduate,
graduate, and professional degrees.
Send feedback to: bygeorge@gwu.edu
