The search committee for the next dean of the Virginia Tech Honors College invites the campus community to participate in open forum sessions — in person and virtually — for the three finalists who will visit the campus in early December.

Saonee Sarker, dean of the Pamplin College of Business and chair of the search committee, invites all members of the campus community to meet the finalists in person or virtually following the open forum discussions. Questions may be submitted during the live discussions and feedback on the candidates can be shared with the search committee following each session.

The new dean of the Honors College will replace Paul Knox, who announced his retirement in August after nearly 40 years of service to Virginia Tech.

Emily Allen 
Tuesday, Dec. 3, 3-4 p.m.; reception, 4-5 p.m.
Holtzman Alumni Center, Assembly Hall
Zoom (Passcode: 000037)

Allen is one of the architects of interdisciplinary honors education at Purdue University, where she currently serves as director of the Blue Sky Teaching and Learning Laboratory. She directed Purdue’s College of Liberal Arts Honors Program from 2008-12 and led the universitywide team that designed the curriculum for the university’s new honors college. Allen completed her Ph.D. at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and held an Isaac Walton Killam Postdoctoral Fellowship at Dalhousie University before joining Purdue’s English department faculty.

Rebecca Bott-Knutson
Thursday, Dec. 5, 3-4 p.m.; reception, 4-5 p.m.
Holtzman Alumni Center, Assembly Hall
Zoom (Passcode: 250308)  

Bott-Knutson is the dean of the Van D. and Barbara B. Fishback Honors College at South Dakota State University, where she provides leadership for curriculum, programming, strategic initiatives, and community engagement. She has contributed to the university’s mission through teaching, research, and outreach — first as a faculty member in the Department of Animal Science and as dean of the Fishback Honors College. She earned her bachelor's degree in animal science from the University of Missouri-Columbia, a master's degree in animal science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, and a Ph.D. in biomedical science from Colorado State University.

Carla Koretsky 
Monday, Dec. 9, 3-4 p.m.; reception, 4-5 p.m.
Holtzman Alumni Center, Assembly Hall
Zoom (Passcode: 896572)

Koretsky has served as the dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Western Michigan University since July 2016. Koretsky and her students have conducted field, laboratory, and modeling geochemical studies to better understand the interactions of contaminants with natural waters, sediments and soils. She earned her Ph.D. in earth and planetary sciences from Johns Hopkins University and her Bachelor of Arts from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, graduating cum laude with an earth and planetary sciences major and minors in economics and music performance.

The dean provides administrative leadership of the Honors College and the capacity to manage a distinctive program in the context of a large, complex institution. The dean should demonstrate outstanding leadership qualities and exceptional interpersonal, collaboration, and communication skills. Candidates must also have a steadfast commitment to innovation in undergraduate education and a track record of advancing inclusive excellence.

These sessions will not be recorded and will only be available to participants with a VT PID.

Search updates for dean of the Virginia Tech Honors College are posted and available on the Office of the Executive Vice President and Provost website. 

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