Karen Gil, a member of the University’s psychology department for 14 years, begins her tenure as the new Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences this fall.
Gil was selected to lead the college after a national search that drew applicants from as far as University of Massachusetts-Amherst and Brown University.
Gil fills a position previously held by Chancellor Holden Thorp. Her appointment is one of several administrative shifts taking place this fall.
Before taking charge of the school’s largest academic unit, Gil was senior associate dean for social sciences and international programs in the college. She also served as chairwoman of the Department of Psychology from 2004-07.
Gil was a faculty member in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at Duke University Medical Center prior to her appointment at UNC in 1995.
“Karen Gill is an outstanding administrator,” said Mark Hollins, director of graduate studies in psychology. “Karen is interested in listening to a wide variety of viewpoints when she is making a decision, and when she does make it, the policy is always clearly explained and uniformly enforced.”
Interim Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Bruce Carney, who filled the dean’s seat while the University selected Gil, has worked with her for years as the two have held different administrative positions.
“She and I were working together at the outset,” said Carney. Gil was chairwoman of the psychology department when Carney first took on an administrative role in the College. “I have always admired the way she works.”
In recent years, the dean position has proven to be a springboard for higher administrative posts. The past two people to hold the office are now chancellors.
