Editor's note: This story was updated at 10:45 a.m. on April 16 to include a statement from Paul Gilmore.
Senior Vice President and Vice Provost André-Denis Wright announced the appointment of Paul Gilmore as the new dean of OU’s Honors College in a campus wide email sent to the OU community Wednesday morning.
Gilmore earned a doctorate degree in English from the University of Chicago. According to Wright, Gilmore was the founding dean of the Honors College at Rutgers University’s, New Brunswick, where he oversaw efforts that led to student rates surpassing national honors program averages. At Rutgers, Wright wrote that Gilmore helped enroll 500 students annually while advancing cross institutional collaboration among honor college deans in the Big Ten conference.
In an email to Honors College faculty, staff and students Wednesday morning, Gilmore wrote he excited to join the university. Gilmore wrote that as OU responds to opportunities and challenges of present day and the future, the college remains committed to empowering students.
"With its strong foundation and impressive history, the Honors College is well poised to seize this moment to become a model of experiential interdisciplinary undergraduate education for the nation and the world," Gilmore wrote.
According to his Linkedin, Gilmore is currently a mentor and consultant for Student Partner Alliance, and a professor at Bard College teaching high school students from Plainfield High School.
“Dr. Gilmore’s experience building a thriving, interdisciplinary honors program from the ground up uniquely positions him to lead our Honors College into its next era of excellence,” Wright wrote.
Gilmore also served as dean of the Liberal Arts and Honors College at Long Island University from July 2022 to July 2023, the director of graduate studies and an American literature professor at California State University, Long Beach, and an assistant English professor at Bucknell University, according to Wright.
“As we prepare to welcome Dr. Gilmore to OU, we also extend our gratitude to Dr. Michael Markham, who has led the Honors College as Interim Dean this past year,” Wright wrote.
Gilmore is replacing Michael Markham, who was selected to be the next dean of the College of Arts and Sciences on April 10. Markham has served as the honor’s college interim dean since June 2024.
The Honors College has been without a permanent dean since 2017 when former dean David Ray left the position. Over the next eight years, the college saw four interim dean changes. Doug Gaffin became interim dean following Ray’s departure. In July 2020, Rich Hamerla took over the interim position from Gaffin. After three years, Kelvin White succeeded Hamerla in 2023, who served in the position until Markham finally became the fourth interim dean in 2024.
In 2020, a search committee selected three candidates for Honors College dean, though none were later hired, according to regents minutes.
According to Wright, Gilmore will officially join OU on June 23, pending final approval from the OU Board of Regents.
“With Dr. Gilmore at the helm, the Honors College is poised for an exciting future,” Wright wrote. “I look forward to seeing its continued impact and success.”
This story was edited by Anusha Fathepure and Ana Barboza.
