Andrew Porter named next GSE dean

Andrew Porter will take the helm as dean of Penn's Graduate School of Education this summer, University President Amy Gutmann announced at Friday's meeting of the Board of Trustees.

Porter will come to Philadelphia from Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tenn., where he currently heads the Learning Sciences Institute and is also the Patricia and Rodes Hart Professor of Leadership Policy and Organization.

He will replace former GSE Dean Susan Fuhrman, who announced last May that she would be leaving Penn to assume the presidency of Columbia University's Teachers College.

During Fuhrman's 11-year tenure, GSE consistently ranked among the top 10 education programs in the nation.

And Gutmann believes Porter will be able to build on that legacy.

"I have no doubt that he will take the Graduate School of Education to ever increasing levels of eminence," she told the Board of Trustees.

Gutmann added that Porter has "large shoes to fill, but he will fill them very well."

Porter earned his Ph.D. in educational psychology at the University of Wisconsin, where he also taught for 15 years. He has been in his current role at Vanderbilt since 2003.

Porter said that he is honored to be GSE's new dean and anxious to get started, and that he is especially excited about GSE's work with Philadelphia's public schools.

"Nothing could be more important," he said, adding that Penn's focus on interdisciplinary and global studies also suits him well.

Penn Law School Dean Michael Fitts chaired the search committee that was charged with finding a replacement for Fuhrman.

The committee worked in conjunction with the executive search firm Isaacson, Miller to come up with a number of potential candidates, Fitts said.

He added that they had been working since September to come up with a short list of names to fill the position.

Qualities that were especially important to the committee were energy and vision, Fitts said.

"Everyone agrees that Susan Fuhrman was truly an excellent dean," Fitts said; the committee wanted "someone who could continue her leadership.

And for Fitts and the rest of the committee, it seems that Porter fits the bill.

"He is a very well accomplished scholar himself. He has a proven track record of working with other academics," Fitts said.

With Porter in charge, Fitts said GSE should be able to stay at the forefront of its field.

"It's a testament to the quality of the School of Education that we were able to attract someone of [Porter's] stature," Fitts said.

But Porter admits to being attracted to Philadelphia for more than just the opportunities GSE has to offer.

"The highlight of my last visit [to Penn] was basketball," said the self-professed "sports junkie," who also cited the abundance of Italian food as one of the city's charms.

Porter's appointment begins Aug. 1.

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