At Thursday’s meeting of the University’s Board of Regents, the board will review a variety of renovation projects and a proposal for a new master’s degree offered by the Medical School. While University Provost Phil Hanlon will soon leave his post to serve as Dartmouth College’s president, the board will consider his temporary appointment as a special counsel to the president.

Regents to approve appointment for University Provost Phil Hanlon

Beginning on May 6, Hanlon will cede his current role to the incoming provost, current Vice Provost Martha Pollack, who was appointed to the position in January. Before leaving the University to become the 18th president of Dartmouth College later this summer, Hanlon will remain as an adviser during the transition until May 31. Hanlon will assume the presidency at Dartmouth on July 1.

In a communication to the regents, University President Mary Sue Coleman expressed “a mix of emotion” in recommending the change in title for Hanlon’s administrative appointment.

“Provost Hanlon has graciously agreed to provide counsel and advice during the transition to help assure administration continuity,” Coleman wrote.

In a November interview with The Michigan Daily, Hanlon said although it will be difficult to leave the University, the Dartmouth presidency presented a “terrific opportunity.” Hanlon has been a member of the University’s faculty since 1986.

“I love the University of Michigan,” Hanlon said. “I have the greatest admiration for the place; I admire what it aspires to; I admire the success it has. ... The people here at the University of Michigan are terrific, and I’ll miss them very much.”

Hanlon will retain his appointments as an Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Mathematics, Donald J. Lewis Professor of Mathematics and tenured professor of mathematics in the College of Literature, Science and the Arts until May 31.

Gelman appointed interim dean of LSA

The regents will also vote on the appointment of University psychology professor Susan Gelman as the interim dean of LSA. Gelman’s term will last from Sept. 1 to Aug. 31, 2014.

Gelman is currently the Heinz Werner Collegiate Chair of Psychology and LSA Professor of Psychology, with tenure. She earned a B.A. in psychology and classical Greek from Oberlin College and later received her Ph.D. in psychology from Stanford University. She has been a University faculty member sine 1984.

Teaching both graduate and undergraduate classes, Gelman’s studies and classes focus primarily on the development of thought and language, particularly with young children. She has published over 200 scholarly articles and has been on the editorial boards for multiple scientific journals. In addition, she was a panelist for the National Institute of Health, the National Science Foundation, and the Ford Foundation. Gelman has previously served as president of the Cognitive Development Society and, in 2012, was elected to the National Academy of Sciences.

At the University, Gelman has served as an adviser to undergraduate, graduate and doctoral fellows, receiving the Developmental Psychology Mentor Award from the American Psychological Association in 2012. She was also awarded the Excellence in Education Award, presented by LSA in 1995.

Gelman has also served as a member of the LSA executive committee and as an associate LSA dean from 2004-2007, responsible for faculty appointments and research in the social sciences. In this capacity, she supervised faculty hiring, promotions and retirements, in addition to encouraging mentoring, faculty research, and monitoring departmental planning and review processes.