March 3, 2011 - 5:41pm
School of Information appoints new dean
BY CAITLIN HUSTON
In an announcement made last month, the University’s School of Information appointed Jeffrey MacKie-Mason as its new dean.
Selected largely by School of Information faculty, MacKie-Mason will assume his new position July 1 after formal approval from the Board of Regents. For MacKie-Mason — who is the associate dean for academic affairs at the school — this appointment continues his long history of involvement with the University.
MacKie-Mason, who is currently the Arthur W. Burks Collegiate Professor of Information and Computer Science and a professor in the Department of Economics and the Ford School of Public Policy, said he originally came to the University as a student in 1982 and spent two years pursuing his master’s degree. After receiving his Ph.D. from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MacKie-Mason returned to the University in 1986 to teach.
As a founding member of the School of Information at the University, MacKie-Mason said he has seen the school’s curriculum undergo many changes, due to the “enormous rate of change” involved in information studies.
With the changing nature of information, MacKie-Mason said he has also seen a transformation in the school, citing the increase in the number of master’s programs has grown. He added that interest in the undergraduate informatics concentration added years ago has steadily risen.
“I think we’re easily going to see it double and become a really important force on campus in the next few years,” he said.
The School of Information is also considering starting a program in health informatics, MacKie-Mason said.
“Michigan is really well-positioned to make a difference in health informatics because we have one of
the best schools of public health in the country and one of the best schools of information in the country,” he said.
MacKie-Mason said the department will also see continuing progress in the development of technology for human interaction, which includes social computing — a field, he said, also has gained popularity.
Though MacKie-Mason’s own research centers on the economics of the Internet, he said he will not be pushing that agenda in particular, but will still maintain its importance in the school.
With these goals in mind, MacKie-Mason said he feels the School of Information can both help students and make an impact on the world.
“My goal is to move ahead in the areas that the world needs the most and that the students are most excited about,” he said.
Part of his excitement also comes from his dedication and long involvement with the University, MacKie-Mason said.
“I love Ann Arbor, I love the University and I’m really thrilled to be able to now contribute in a leadership role,” MacKie-Mason said.
According to a University press release, future provost Phil Hanlon said he feels that MacKie-Mason will be a “successful dean.”
"Dr. MacKie-Mason is a respected scholar, educator, and administrator and has the qualities needed to be a successful dean. I look forward to working with him in the years ahead," Hanlon said.
MacKie-Mason will replace Martha Pollack, who will become vice provost for academic and budgetary affairs.
