Dr. Farrell: Associate Dean for Arts and Letters

Dr. Joseph Farrell of Classical Studies will become Associate Dean for Arts and Letters as of July 1, 2003, succeeding Dr. Rebecca Bushnell when she assumes the College deanship. Dr. Farrell will oversee the School's academic programs in the humanities, including 11 departments: Asian and Middle Eastern Studies, Classical Studies, English, German, History of Art, Music, Philosophy, Religious Studies, Romance Languages, Slavic Languages, and South Asia Studies.

Dr. Farrell is a seasoned member of the SAS administration, having served as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies between 1999 and 2002. He joined the Penn faculty in 1984 and is currently the Edmund J. and Louise W. Kahn Endowed Term Professor in the Humanities. He received his A.B. from Bowdoin College and his Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina. Dr. Farrell is a distinguished scholar of Latin and Greek literature and of Roman culture and society; his most recent book is Latin Language and Latin Culture (Cambridge, 2001). 

Dr. Walter Licht will continue to serve as Associate Dean for Graduate Studies for one more year. He is currently serving in that role in an acting capacity while Dr. Farrell is on leave this year; he had previously served as graduate dean from 1995 to 1999. Dr. Licht will also continue to oversee the School's research and area studies centers. "I am grateful for the many years of effective service that Walter has devoted to the School," said Dean Samuel Preston.