After months of uncertainty, Penn names new deans of SAS, College

Richard Beeman, a History professor, has replaced Robert Rescorla as College dean. History Professor Richard Beeman began his tenure as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences January 1, taking the helm of the University's largest undergraduate school. Then-School of Arts and Sciences Dean Walter Wales announced Beeman's appointment December 15, capping a nearly year-long search. Beeman, a former chairperson of the History Department who specializes in early American history, replaces outgoing College Dean Robert Rescorla. Rescorla will return to teach in the Psychology Department next semester. In an interview the week of the announcement, Beeman praised Rescorla, who he said has "done more to enhance the role of College dean than any individual I have witnessed during my 29 years at the University. "[Rescorla] will be a tough act to follow, but I hope to rise to the challenge," he added. And although he said it would be "presumptuous" to lay out specific goals for the College, Beeman said he looked forward to working with other deans "to make the undergraduate education at Penn the very best available at any research university in the world." Beeman was selected for the position from among three finalists identified by a search committee, Wales said. "Any one of them would have been an excellent choice," he noted. Rescorla, who said in September he would step down from his post at the end of the year regardless of whether his successor had been named, said last month that Beeman was an "outstanding choice." "He is energetic, knowledgeable about Penn and has always had a keen interest in undergraduates," he said. Rescorla added that he was relieved that his successor was named before the College office moved back to Logan Hall. He stressed that he "never had any doubt that my successor would be named before the start of the spring term." Beeman has been at the University for almost 30 years, having joined Penn in 1968 shortly after receiving his doctorate from the University of Chicago. He has a long record of administrative posts in both SAS and the University, including stints as the chairperson of the History Department from 1988 to 1991 and as SAS's associate dean for the humanities and social sciences from 1991 to 1995. Currently, Beeman sits on several University-wide task forces and is a senior fellow at Philadelphia's National Constitution Center. He is a highly regarded scholar and teacher of early American history, with particular interest in the American Revolution, the Constitution and early American political culture. About 6,000 students, nearly two-thirds of Penn's undergraduate population of 9,500, are enrolled in the College.