Is the Search for a New Turner College Dean Focused Inward?

With only three weeks remaining for candidates to submit applications for consideration in the search for a new Turner College dean, it appears as though the advertisement for the position will not appear in either The Chronicle of Higher Education or Inside Higher Ed, nor on CSU's employment portal webpages or the AACSB's website. Combined with the brevity of a search that is expected to have a candidate selected in December, the decision by Buffkin/Baker to make the application process available only through its website has readers of Turner Business somewhat perplexed. One reader has suggested, however, that these decisions make sense if the goal is to hire someone who is already affiliated with a USG-member institution. That sounds reasonable, and perhaps the first pool of candidates in this case would be individuals currently serving as associate deans within the business schools at the eight institutions in the top two USG institutional tiers. Among the research universities, the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia employs three associate deans: (1) Associate Dean for Graduate Programs and AI Initiatives, (2) Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs, and (3) Associate Dean for Research, Executive and International Programs. Next, the Scheller College of Business at the Georgia Institute of Technology also employs three associate deans: (4) Senior Associate Dean for Strategic Initiatives, (5) Senior Associate Dean for Programs, and (6) Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Research. Likewise, the Robinson College of Business at Georgia State University has three associate deans: (7) Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs, (8) Associate Dean for Organizational Development and Culture, and (9) Senior Associate Dean for Faculty and Research. Lastly, the Hull College of Business at Augusta University employs an (10) Associate Dean for Research and Faculty Affairs and an (11) Associate Dean for Academic and Student Affairs. In addition to the 11 potential candidates from the business schools in the USG's research universities, there are several from the business schools in the USG's comprehensive universities. For example, the Coles College of Business and Kennesaw State University employs an (12) Associate Dean of Graduate Programs, (13) Associate Dean of Research and Accreditation, (14) Associate Dean for Community and Faculty Affairs, and (15) Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs. The Parker College of Business at Georgia Southern University employs an (16) Associate Dean for Academic and Faculty Affairs and an (17) Associate Dean for Students and External Relations. In addition to these, the Richards College of Business at the University of West Georgia has two (18-19) general associate deans, while, like the Turner College at CSU, the Langdale College of Business Administration at Valdosta State University employs a single (20) general associate dean. In all, there are 20 associate deans of business working at the eight institutions in the USG's top two tiers. Perhaps we'll see one or more of them among the final four candidates.