Henrietta Williams Pichon, interim dean of New Mexico State University’s College of Education, has been named interim dean of the new College of Health, Education and Social Transformation effective July 1.
A national search will begin soon to find a permanent dean for the new college, which was approved by the NMSU Board of Regents May 14.
“Dr. Pichon’s experience will be invaluable in the role of leading the students, faculty and staff through the important work of helping to shape and define the future mission and programs of the new college,” said Carol Parker, NMSU provost and senior vice president for academic affairs.
Pichon was named the College of Education’s interim dean in August after serving as the college’s interim associate dean of academic affairs. Pichon’s research has focused on access, development and persistence of historically underrepresented groups in higher education, and has years of experience in higher education as an administrator and faculty member. She earned a Ph.D. in education administration with a focus on higher education from the University of New Orleans.
The College of Health, Education and Social Transformation combines the College of Education, College of Health and Social Services and the Department of Sociology, and will be a focal point for the university’s health, education, social mobility, social justice and social transformation programs, all of which are well-positioned for future growth.
Parker said the new transdisciplinary college will play a large role in helping NMSU achieve its strategic goals by encouraging enrollment growth in the fields of health and education, which is vitally important to area communities; encouraging more community-based research, outreach and engagement; increasing grant funding for these academic units; and strengthening the financial position of these units to better support these outcomes.
Merging these units to create the new college will not disrupt any currently offered academic programs and will not affect pre-existing authorizations or accreditation of programs, program enrollments in majors and other programs of study, faculty hiring or promotion-and-tenure standards.
For more information about the new college, including frequently asked questions and an archive of the town hall sessions that helped shaped planning, visit https://provost.nmsu.edu/provost-office-projects/hes/index.html.