James Glaser Named Interim Dean of A&S

James M. Glaser, the dean of academic affairs for the School of Arts and Sciences, has been named the school’s dean ad interim, effective June 1. He succeeds Joanne Berger-Sweeney, who is leaving Tufts to become president of Trinity College in Hartford, Conn.

“As a longtime Tufts faculty member and academic administrator, Jim is superbly positioned to lead Arts and Sciences through the upcoming decanal transition,” Provost and Senior Vice President David Harris wrote in a May 15 email to the Tufts community.

Of his new position Glaser says, “I view my job as supporting those around me—faculty, students, staff—so that they can be their best. It’s an exciting job for me because I so believe in this place, its people and its values.”

A noted scholar of American political behavior and public opinion and a frequent national media commentator on politics and elections, Glaser joined Tufts in 1991 as an assistant professor in the Department of Political Science. He was promoted to associate and then full professor; he served as department chair from 1999 until 2003. His third book, Changing Minds if Not Hearts: Political Remedies for Racial Conflict, which he wrote with his former student Timothy Ryan, A06, was published last year by the University of Pennsylvania Press.

In 2000, Glaser was awarded the Lerman-Neubauer Prize for Outstanding Teaching and Advising, given annually to a faculty member judged by graduating seniors as having had a profound impact on them intellectually in and out of the classroom.

In addition to his many scholarly contributions, Glaser has distinguished himself as an effective academic administrator. He has served as dean of academic affairs for Arts and Sciences since 2010, providing day-to-day support for half of the departments and programs in Arts and Sciences, as well as serving as a member of Berger-Sweeney’s senior team. Prior to that, he had been dean of undergraduate education for Arts, Sciences and Engineering since 2003.

Harris says a search for a permanent dean of Arts and Sciences will begin within the next few weeks and continue into the 2014–15 academic year.