David Perlmutter, former dean and current professor at Texas Tech University’s College of Media and Communication, illustrated his vision and plans for Gaylord College to a small group of students, faculty and staff Thursday on the second day of his three-day interview process for the college’s open dean position.
During a public forum, Perlmutter outlined his vision for the college, which included “aggressive” fundraising efforts, finding new donors, easing salary compression issues and investing in new technologies.
Perlmutter said, if selected dean, he would need to learn the college for at least a year and some of his priorities would be to create a fundraising portfolio and have conversations with administrators about their expectations for Gaylord.
Perlmutter spoke about his experience in fundraising at Texas Tech, saying fundraising is becoming more of a social science, attaching research to the practice of meeting and listening to donors.
“Fundraising is often a scary thing for those of us who are thrown into it like I was but now I love it,” Perlmutter said. “I think one of the great opportunities for Gaylord is to do more of that much more aggressively for some of the projects that you need some help on.”
Before his time at Texas Tech, he served as director of University of Iowa’s School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and associate dean for graduate studies at Louisiana State University and at University of Kansas, according to his CV.
Perlmutter is the second of five candidates to undergo a three-day interview process for Gaylord College’s open dean position.
Dean candidate David Perlmutter on March 7.
Experience in academia, DEI issues
Perlmutter told a story of his childhood growing up as an only child with two parents who were professors at the University of Pennsylvania. Perlmutter, according to his Texas Tech biography, sees higher education as his “family business.” Outside of his work in higher education, he writes an “Admin 101” column once a month for the Chronicle of Higher Education, which he has done since 2001. He has also written 10 books.
“Unlike a lot of people today, they spent most of their entire career in one university,” Perlmutter said. “To the point about them being professors, they really, really loved being professors.”
Asked by an OU Daily reporter about his experience being heavily in academia rather than professional media spaces, Perlmutter said he has some experience with photography while citing his recurring column for the Chronicle of Higher Education, but most of his career has been spent in academia.
“I get a paycheck every month for the last 23 years for newspapers, so I guess that counts (as professional experience),” Perlmutter said. “I was paid to do work, so to me that counts at some level of professional experience, but absolutely, yeah, most of my career has been as a professor.”
The first candidate for the Gaylord College dean position, OU professor and distinguished veteran network news correspondent Mike Boettcher, does not hold a bachelor’s degree, but has extensive professional journalism experience that few could rival. Boettcher told OU Daily and OU Nightly reporters in an interview that he considers his years as a correspondent with CNN, NBC News and ABC as his Ph.D.
The third candidate, Kent State University’s School of Media and Journalism director Emily Metzgar, has served in her role since 2020. Her experience, like Perlmutter’s, is primarily in academia, research and writing about foreign affairs, its intersection with media and the role of media in society.
The fourth candidate, Andrea Miller, dean and director of Mayborn School of Journalism at the University of North Texas, joined UNT in 2019. She previously worked professionally in broadcast journalism starting in 1990 at KAMU-TV, at WFAA-TV in 1993 and then KTVT-TV in 1994, where she later became a producer. She previously was a professor and associate dean for undergraduate studies at the Manship School of Mass Communication at Louisiana State University. There, she taught courses in crisis communications, broadcast news and multimedia reporting.
The final candidate Avery Holton, chair of the Department of Communication at the University of Utah, also serves as the co-coordinator of research for the university’s Utah Center of Excellence in ELSI Research, which focuses on genetics and communication. He previously worked in media as a freelance sports reporter with the Austin American-Statesman and as director of communications for the Round Rock Express, the Texas Rangers’ triple-A affiliate.
Perlmutter said a relationship with people who have both professional and research experience are wanted in the industry, which he says includes nonprofits, government and private companies.
Former Dean Ed Kelley stepped down in May, citing his 70th birthday and a need for younger leadership as media rapidly evolves.
Perlmutter did not specify his age, but in response, he said he wouldn’t want a college that was seen as only having one person in charge and he wants to allow more people to have a say in the operations of the college.
“I like to think that the dean has a role, but (students) have a role and everybody in this room and building has a role,” Perlmutter said. “The question is where do the ideas come from? … I wouldn’t want to have a college where it was seen as only one person in charge of vision and leadership, it’s all about shared governance.”
Perlmutter, who served as dean of Texas Tech’s College of Media and Communication for 10 years, said he stepped down in July to return to teaching. He is also currently a finalist for University of Arkansas’ Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences dean position, and he previously was a finalist for Illinois State University’s open provost position in 2020.
“I want to be in a position, especially at a flagship university, where I serve a broader mission and a broad constituency, and that’s what I’ve been looking at,” Perlmutter said.
If selected as dean, Perlmutter said he plans to hold the position for around 10 years before returning to teach.
“I found maybe there’s a sort of magic in (staying for 10 years), that is about as long as it takes for the cycle of ideas, projects, implementations to see whether they’re really successful and established long term,” Perlmutter said.
Perlmutter was at Louisiana State University for nearly 10 years, University of Kansas for almost three years, the University of Iowa for roughly five years and Texas Tech for around 11 years, according to his LinkedIn.
When asked about how he will prioritize student interaction during his deanship, Perlmutter said he wasn’t sure if he’d be able to connect with every student but said it should be something the new dean attempts to do.
“I do think that we do need to know what all the stakeholders and all the constituencies, I did feel as a dean and as a graduate director, I did try to go to where people are,” Perlmutter said.
Perlmutter said “if you want” a diverse workforce, Gaylord College should aim to recruit and hire people with different perspectives. In his experience, Perlmutter said he’s never received backlash from anyone he’s discussed diversity, equity and inclusion premises with.
“That’s the key because I think you as a student, anyone as a student, needs to be exposed (to diversity.) It makes you stronger intellectually, politically, whatever, if you’d be exposed to ideas you might not like, that you might hate, that you may disagree with widely,” Perlmutter said.
Perlmutter will meet with Gaylord students at 4 p.m. Thursday after he meets with OU’s Norman campus deans and Gaylord faculty and staff. On Friday, he will meet with the Gaylord Board of Visitors, OU President Joseph Harroz Jr. and Senior Vice President and Provost for OU André-Denis Wright.
The candidates for dean of Gaylord College. From left to right; Mike Boettcher, veteran network news correspondent and OU journalism professor; Texas Tech University professor and former dean of its journalism college David Perlmutter; Kent State University’s School of Media and Journalism director Emily Metzgar; University of North Texas Dean of the Mayborn School of Journalism Andrea Miller; and Chair of the Department of Communication at the University of Utah Avery Holton.
Gaylord College dean search
Wright told OU Daily in September that once the search committee made its selection of finalists, those would be made public. Some faculty and staff were notified Friday that Boettcher was one candidate, according to an interview schedule and email obtained by OU Daily that day.
At the time the dean candidate qualifications and requirements were announced, many faculty and staff questioned the composition of the search committee approved by the OU Board of Regents in September.
The search committee, chaired by Price College of Business Dean Corey Phelps, includes Gaylord College professors Robert Kerr, Doyle Yoon, Erin Kökdil, Jensen Moore, senior academic adviser Joshua Kahoe, Director of Student Services Kathy Sawyer and Gaylord Board of Visitors member Roger Frizzell.
Two students within the college, graduate student Alex Eschbach and public relations senior Acacia McDonald, are on the committee. Outside of the college, professor in the Department of Communication John Banas, classics and letters professor Daniela Garofalo, executive director of advancement for the OU Foundation Emily Reed and senior program officer at the Inasmuch Foundation Tyler Tokarczyk also joined the committee.
The five finalists were officially announced to faculty and staff Sunday night. OU Daily’s report came out early Monday morning and the announcements for Perlmutter and Boettcher’s public forums were sent to the OU community Monday afternoon.
Metzgar will interview on March 10-12. The fourth candidate, Miller, will be on campus from March 11-13, and the fifth candidate, Holton, will be on campus after spring break on March 24-26.
OU shared the qualifications and requirements for the position in October, stating that “candidates must have a record of accomplishments (academic or professional) to qualify for appointment at the rank of Professor. A Ph.D. is preferred.”
The qualifications and requirements for the position, as outlined in a document prepared by search firm Greenwood Asher & Associates, described the college’s ideal next dean as possessing “a vision that prioritizes community, educational rigor, traditional and applied scholarship, teaching, a global presence, and public service.”
Read more about the dean search:
This story was edited by Ismael Lele and Anusha Fathepure.
