CADEN HAYNOR / NEWS EDITOR

CONNOR DUFFEY / ASST. NEWS EDITOR

Department chairs who do not specialize in the disciplines they oversee, are leading students and faculty. This is a little-known practice that is shaping leadership across multiple university programs  

At least three departments. across USD’s  College  of Arts and Sciences and the Knauss   School of Business   are currently   chaired   by   professors   from outside their fields:   neuroscience, cognition and   behavior  (NCB),   psychological sciences,  art,   architecture and art history and economics.   USD   College of Arts and Sciences Associate Dean of Faculty Jillian   Tullis, PhD, explained   why a   chair may be a   professor   that   teaches in a different department.

“The   reason  that they would be chairing that department  varies,”   Tullis said.  “Sometimes   it   may  be   a reason   that the   department or dean   might   see   that   they  need an   outside  voice  to   help   lead  the department.   Sometimes it is because there isn’t anybody  who may be eligible  or  qualified  or   interested  to chair the department…   There may  be   a   department  that   has a  leadership   direction   that they’re  trying to   go  to   and   they need  somebody  from outside  the   discipline.   And  then  sometimes   the   department’s   so small  they  don’t  have   enough  people that  are tenured.”

USD professor Joseph Provost, PhD, instructs chemistry  and   biochemistry and is chair of the art, architecture and art history department. Provost has served as chair of three different departments at two different universities, totaling 16 years of experience in this type of position.

Provost described his interactions with students and the areas of their academic journey   he   seeks   to   assist   them.

“Since I’m not an instructor   [in the department],   [students]   only come to the chair if there’s a problem with getting into class,” Provost explained. “Maybe a problem or concern they have with financial aid or registration, timing of classes, maybe an issue with another student or faculty and that’s the same in all departments.”

USD junior Skylar Bruner, an architecture and visual arts double major, explained her perspective on having a department chair outside of her major.

“I think it’s interesting having the chemistry professor being our chair,” Bruner said. “I think cross-disciplinary approaches  are really important, but also having someone  within the department might  have more understanding because [Provost] is  not  around  a lot. He’s  in the  chemistry department   more   than  he’s  here, which is   a  little  frustrating.”

Provost responded to this comment.

“I am in the [department] everyday and have met with any student who reaches out,” Provost said. “I’ve never heard from  students  looking for  me but would enjoy visiting with them… It’s  unfortunate they aren’t aware when I’m there, but the chairs job is mostly focused on staff and faculty. Students of course are the reasons chairs do our job. I would also add that, as an external chair, I still teach in chemistry and   biochemistry and maintain my  research  lab with 13 students. It  is  impossible to be in the [department] as much as I wished.”

Tammy Dwyer, PhD, is a professor in chemistry and biochemistry and has served as the chair of the NCB and the psychological sciences departments since July 2024. 

The NCB and psychological sciences departments were previously one department. In the summer of 2024, they split into two departments, leaving Dwyer as the chair of both departments until she retires. Earlier in her USD career, Dwyer chaired the chemistry and biochemistry department for 13 years.

Dwyer explained how she interacts with the students in NCB and psychological sciences departments the departments that she chairs and teaches for at USD.

“I have like 50 advisees, half of them in NCB and half in psychology, and  I   still  have  three in chemistry and biochemistry,” Dwyer described. “So I got to learn about the curriculum and come up to speed quickly about what classes were, like PSYC 359, because you got to know this stuff. So I was up for the challenge…  At the end of the day, it’s always about the students, but  serving  500 majors is just a lot, so [the department split] had to happen.” 

USD senior and NCB major Ari Bradford described her thoughts  on  having  a   department chair out of the NCB discipline.

“That could be an issue in understanding what the [neuroscience] department needs versus      the [biochemistry] department over in Shiley,”  Bradford   said. “That could affect us and our needs and what our labs need. Just   trying to   divide   resources.”

Even though  serving students   is   a large   part   of being   a     department   chair,  there  are   other     responsibilities  which the   professor in charge must   perform.   As the  academic and   administrative leader, the department  chair   is responsible for faculty, curriculum, budgeting needs, assisting   students   and    multiple   other jobs to maintain the well-being of the department.

USD Associate Professor in Chemistry and Biochemistry Eleanor Gillette, PhD, gave a look into the job of a  department chair.

“It’s not just ‘you get to put a fancy little plate  on your door’ and be like,    ‘I’m    the  department chair,’”  Gillette said. “It’s behind-the-scenes stuff.   You guys  are  getting  ready to register  for   classes right now. They are the ones who make sure that the numbers in the computer   system for  the  classes match, and   that   the times are right and everybody’s in the classroom. That’s one of the things that department chairs are coordinating. You know, it’s not the most fun and exciting job, but it’s super important.”

Tullis explained some of the advantages and disadvantages of a department chair being outside their discipline.

“I think that there are ways in which having expertise obviously has   some   advantages, because you already know, are intimately familiar with, the curriculum,” Tullis said. “That can be  advantageous for not just the students, but for the faculty. An outside person may not have the same level of knowledge, but ideally that person would recognize that they are   lacking in  that  area  and they would refer to the faculty in that department to help inform them. On the flip side, I   think  there   is a potential for   someone with an outside perspective   to   come in and  ask  certain   key  questions.”

Provost   explained how he has   used   his   experience    in the science     department   to   aid   his  work   in   an   art   department.

“I  think  what helped   having a science chair in that department   is the   resources and safety,”  Provost  said. “So there’s a  lot of clear safety   issues in chemistry,  in biochemistry and  physics that   are identical  to  what   happens in   architecture and the visual arts…   There  are  a lot of similarities  and  me  bringing  my   experience  on  how to  put things   together, how  to organize,   how   to  manage, how to apply resources and make things  open  and   transparent was something I was able to bring.”

Dwyer’s work as chair has involved working with the professors in both the NCB and psychological sciences disciplines, attempting to create two autonomous departments. Dwyer explained the importance of transparency for her during this process.

“There was still some building, and some rebuilding on the psychological sciences side, that had  to be  done,” Dwyer said. “So I think I’ve just had a lot of experience and I worked hard to be transparent and earn the trust of the people who didn’t know me. I don’t always have to be right, I just like to steer.”

Following Dwyer’s retirement in less than a year, the departments she leads plan on hiring separate chairs to lead each discipline.

Many of these departments led by external chairs are undergoing internal changes, which does sometimes require the assistance of an experienced chair.

External chairs take on all chair responsibilities, including assisting students. Photo courtesy of @usdpolisci_ir/Instagram