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Dr. Ann Staton joins TWU as dean of the College of Arts and
Sciences
9/9/05
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DENTON — A desire to return to academic life led Dr.
Ann Staton to leave the corporate environment for Texas Woman’s
University. The new dean of TWU’s College of Arts and
Sciences says that, despite their differences, academia and
business are connected through the liberal arts, which she
considers the foundation of an educated mind.
“One of the
many things I learned from the corporate world is that business
needs employees who are broadly educated as critical thinkers,
literate writers, articulate communicators and creative problem
solvers who can gather and analyze data to make sound, reasoned,
informed decisions,” she said.
Dr. Staton holds
degrees in oral communication and English from Baylor University,
and a doctorate in speech communication from the University
of Texas at Austin. She was a member of the College of Arts
and Sciences faculty and administration at the University
of Washington in Seattle for more than 20 years, serving as
a professor of communication and as chair of the department
of communication. She then returned to her native Texas, where
she worked for five years as executive vice president of Staton
Wholesale, a large, family-owned wholesale apparel company
with corporate offices in Dallas.
Dr. Carolyn Gunning,
TWU interim provost and vice president for academic affairs,
said Dr. Staton’s academic and corporate experience
will be an asset to the university as well as the College
of Arts and Sciences.
“Today’s academic leaders need to bridge the academic,
public and corporate worlds and communicate effectively with
diverse groups,” Dr. Gunning said. “Dr. Staton
has a strong record of interaction with students, faculty,
staff and community members. We are pleased to welcome her
to TWU.”
As dean, Dr. Staton
takes on a role previously held by Dr. Richard Rodean, who
retired following the spring 2005 semester. “Dr. Rodean
was very gracious in providing a smooth transition,”
Dr. Staton said. “He gave me a good sense of continuity.”
Dr. Staton said
trends in higher education will continue to place multiple
demands on the time, energy and resources of the College’s
faculty and staff.
“Higher education
is changing rapidly,” she said. “Trends such as
the globalization of higher education, the development of
new technologies for teaching and research, the increasingly
competitive nature of higher education — from competition
in rankings, to competition for students, to competition from
private and for-profit universities — to name a few,
provide both challenges and opportunities for us.
“To remain
on the forefront with respect to innovative teaching, high
quality research and meaningful service requires prioritizing
multiple, worthwhile needs as well as securing outside funding
to address some of these needs,” she added.
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Tel: (940) 898-3456
e-mail: kgarcia@twu.edu |
