Provost Names Smith to Dean's Post in College of Education and Health Professions

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Tom Smith

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Provost Sharon Gaber has appointed Tom Smith, University Professor of special education, as dean of the College of Education and Health Professions at the University of Arkansas, effective March 1.

“Dr. Smith has demonstrated his leadership and communication skills during these past six months. He has strong support from faculty, staff, students and off-campus constituency groups related to both education and health sciences,” Gaber said.

Chancellor G. David Gearhart agreed that “Tom Smith is the right person to lead the college. He has demonstrated that he is a strong, yet affable leader.”

Smith’s appointment runs through June 30, 2015. Smith began serving as interim dean last August following the completion of Reed Greenwood’s eight years in the post.

The decision was made following a rigorous, nationwide search process in which five candidates engaged in two days each of interviews and meetings with internal and external stakeholders in the college, including faculty, staff and students, as well as with university leaders. Two candidates, including Smith, spent an additional day on campus in interviews and meetings.

"I want to thank the chancellor, provost, search committee members and others for their support, and I look forward to serving as dean of the college for the next five years," Smith said. "While we are in difficult financial times, I am confident that we can come together as a college and emerge as a stronger academic unit in the future." 

Smith formerly served as head of the college’s department of curriculum and instruction. He has also been associate dean of the College of Education at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock and chairman of the department of special education at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

The College of Education and Health Professions is composed of five academic departments with more than 100 faculty members, the university’s intramural and recreational sports department, and 13 research and service units. The college’s enrollment grew by 52.6 percent during Greenwood’s tenure, from 2,171 students in the fall of 2001 to 3,305 students in the fall of 2008. For fall 2009, enrollment was 3,628 students, giving the college the second-largest enrollment on campus and the most graduate students.

The college has academic programs educating students in teaching, nursing, educational leadership, communication disorders, health science, kinesiology, recreation, human resource development, workforce development, educational technology, higher education, counselor education, education reform, education policy, educational statistics and rehabilitation counseling.

Smith holds a Doctor of Education from Texas Tech University and a Master of Education and a Bachelor of Education, both from the University of Mississippi. All of his degrees are in special education.

Smith has authored or co-authored 26 books, eight book chapters and 35 journal articles. He has made more than 200 presentations at national, regional and state professional meetings, and he has conducted workshops on Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 in more than 40 states. He has also authored grants funded at more than $1 million. In 1992, President Clinton appointed him to the President’s Committee on Mental Retardation; he was reappointed for two additional terms. Since 1994, Smith has served as the executive director of the Division on Autism and Developmental Disabilities of the Council for Exceptional Children, a national, professional organization with more than 6,000 members.