College Reorganization Takes Effect July 1

A plan to reorganize the College of Integrated Science and Technology into two colleges takes effect July 1. The new colleges will be the College of Health and Behavioral Studies and the College of Integrated Science and Engineering.

CISAT was the largest college on campus based on the number of majors served by nine academic departments. The move to divide the college follows four years of faculty discussions and collaborative planning and will allow for better recognition of the various programs.

The College of Health and Behavioral Studies (CHBS) will consist of seven academic units: communication sciences and disorders; psychology; graduate psychology; health sciences; kinesiology; nursing; and social work. The College of Integrated Science and Engineering (CISE) will consist of three departments: integrated science and technology; computer science; and engineering. ISAT and computer science were part of CISAT. The School of Engineering, which will become the department of engineering within CISE, was started about the time discussion began about separating the health and human service programs from the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs.

Dr. Sharon Lovell will serve as interim dean of CHBS and Dr. Robert Kolvoord will serve as the interim dean of CISE. Kolvoord will also continue in his role as the head of engineering. National searches for both deanships will occur at a later date.

The new colleges emphasize JMU's commitment to addressing pressing needs in Virginia and around the country to train students in the health and STEM fields.