Joan Smith, dean of the University of Vermont College of Arts and Sciences, passed away on the evening of September 10 at her home in Hartland, VT.
“Joan Smith did an outstanding job strengthening the college and guiding it to stronger times,” said Daniel Mark Fogel, UVM president. “The university is losing one its strongest leaders and, for so many in the UVM community, one of our most cherished friends.”
“It is with the deepest sense of sadness that we mourn the loss of our dear colleague and friend,” said Provost John Bramley. “Joan was a pillar of this university; and we will miss her enormously. She leaves our university with a distinguished and lasting legacy.”
Jane Knodell, associate dean and associate professor of economics, will serve as acting dean of the College of Arts and Sciences.
Smith, a professor of sociology with special interest in economic processes and labor force issues, was named the first woman dean of the university’s largest academic division in 1996 after serving in an interim capacity for the 1995-96 academic year. The College of Arts and Sciences is home to more than 4,000 students, 230 tenure track and 107 non tenure /track faculty, and 116 staff.
Smith’s accomplishments as dean were many, including implementing the ALANA Studies program; developing integrated first-year programs and an honors program; and working to emphasize equitable compensation and recognize merit among Arts and Sciences faculty.
Under Smith’s leadership, enrollment in the College of Arts and Sciences increased over 15 percent; applications for admission to the college increased by 28 percent; and the applications of the most highly qualified students increased from 35 to 49 percent. Sponsored awards (grants and contracts) to College of Arts and Sciences faculty increased from $2.9 million in 1996 to $6.3 million in 2003.
Smith was also a leader in implementing UVM’s commitment to diversity. Of the 123 faculty hired during her deanship, 50 percent were women and ALANA faculty. Multicultural enrollments in the college increased by 77 percent, rising from 157 to 279, and the share of ALANA faculty grew from 5.4 percent in 1996 to 12.8 percent this year.
Prior to her position as dean, Smith spent a year as special assistant to President Thomas Salmon, acting as a liaison between the faculty and administration, resolving faculty concerns and working on broad policy issues.
Smith earned her doctorate in sociology at New York University and taught at Dartmouth College and the State University of New York in Binghamton before joining UVM in 1990 to teach sociology and serve as the first director of the Women’s Studies program, a position she held for five years. During that time she also helped lay the groundwork for the university’s Women’s Center.
Smith was the author and/or co-author of books including “Hard Work and Making Do: Labor Mobilization in Rural Areas,” “Creating and Transforming Households: The Constraints of the World Economy,” and “Racism and Sexism in the World System.” As Women’s Studies director, she coordinated publication of a statewide women’s resource guide titled, “Linking Arms: Women’s Advocacy Network in Vermont.”
Her research on rural poverty and women’s health and economic needs was funded by the Ford Foundation, National Endowment for the Humanities, Public Welfare Foundation, and Plumstock Foundation.
An advocate for women’s issues in Vermont, she was a vocal opponent of a welfare reform bill proposed by the Vermont legislature in 1993 that would terminate welfare benefits to poor women after two and a half years; her efforts helped lead to the inclusion of transitional benefits now acknowledged to have been essential in the bill’s success – retention of health care for single mothers who found work, transportation assistance to get to work, and child care while at work
In a 1997 interview, Smith was asked how she would like to be remembered. “I’d like to think people would say about me that I valued their work,” she said.
A memorial service will be held on Friday, September 17 at 3:00 p.m. in Ira Allen Chapel, followed by a reception at the Billings Student Center.
