Barbara J. Wilson, the dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, will serve in the role ofchancellor while the campus conducts a nationwide search to replace former Chancellor Phyllis M. Wise.
Wilson’s appointment as acting chancellor was made official at the Aug. 12 special meeting of the U. of I. Board of Trustees’ Executive Committee. She would become interim chancellor with board approval Sept. 10 and serve until a new permanent chancellor takes office.
“As an educator first and foremost, she understands the intersections among the disciplines and can fully represent a comprehensive, magnificent campus,” said President Timothy L. Killeen. “I am deeply grateful for her willingness to share her talents as acting chancellor.”
He said he selected Wilson after considering “a huge number of nominees” from campus.
Killeen said Wilson also will continue her role as dean and will not be a candidate in the search for a permanent chancellor. He said the search will be guided by a committee of “internal and external stakeholders,” and that he is in the process of choosing its members.
Following the executive committee meeting, Wilson said she was surprised to get the call to serve as chancellor, but she
accepted because she is committed to helping move the campus forward. She said her leadership style would be one of openness and collaboration.
“I’m a very collaborative person,” she said. “Anyone who knows me knows that’s my reputation. I know the campus quite well, and I want to consult with everyone. We have many important goals to accomplish.”
Wilson said she will continue to support the new engineering-focused college of medicine on campus and will make the search for its dean a priority. She said she already was familiar with the mechanisms in motion after having served on the chancellor’s college of medicine task force.
Wilson said she is confident that changes proposed by Killeen will have an overall positive affect on faculty recruitment and retention.
“It’s a constant piece of work,” she said. “Our faculty is hanging in there and they are excited about the future.”
“Times are changing, and I look forward to Interim Chancellor Wilson’s leadership this coming year,” said Roy Campbell, outgoing chairman of the Senate Executive Committee. “I fully support President Killeen and his guidance in defining the future for our university system. Shared governance has guided us through many difficulties in the past. Shared governance and faculty participation in academic decision-making will continue to serve us in the future.”
Wilson became the Harry E. Preble Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences in 2014 after having served since 2009 in the Office of the Provost. Her service there included two years as the executive vice provost for faculty and academic affairs, providing campus leadership on strategic and financial planning.
Before joining the Urbana campus in 2000, Wilson was a faculty member at the University of California at Santa Barbara for 12 years. A professor of communication, her academic research focuses on the social and psychological effects of media, especially on youth. Wilson is an elected fellow of the International Communication Association, and her scholarly work is extensively published, which includes dozens of books, chapters and articles on a wide range of issues involving the social and psychological effects of media on children.
Wilson is a three-degree alumna of the University of Wisconsin at Madison, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism and her master’s degree and Ph.D. in communication.
“I am honored to be asked to serve in this role,” Wilson said in a written statement. “As interim chancellor, my focus will be on stability and continuity in the transition to a new permanent chancellor so our faculty, students and staff may concentrate on their work and the fulfillment of our missions.
“I look forward to working with the faculty, staff, students, alumni, President Killeen, the trustees and the entire university community to advance Illinois as the pre-eminent public university in America,” she said.
