Behind the Dean's Desk

What led you to this opportunity?

I joined the University of South Dakota in 2007 as the founding director of the Center for Teaching and Learning. In 2019, I was promoted to assistant provost, with the Center for Teaching and Learning, Testing Center, University Assessment and the Gallagher Center included in my portfolio. On February 29, 2020, I became dean of the College of Fine Arts. I began my academic career at an institution outside Washington, D.C.. Although my wife and I are originally from Nebraska, the position at the University of South Dakota represented an opportunity to move closer to home. The University of South Dakota and the community of Vermillion have been a blessing to my family and me.

What's a moment with a student that reminded you why this work matters? 

When asked that question, I do not think of a single event, but rather a collage of memories. It includes helping a deserving student receive an unexpected scholarship, laughing with students in the hallway, sitting with a student while they cry and celebrating a successful exhibition, recital or performance. It may be a word of encouragement or even an eye-rolling dad joke. Each day, I walk through the halls of the Warren M. Lee Center and have the privilege of hearing and seeing the incredible work our students create while sharing in the small moments of their lives. That is the joy of the experience—it is found every day, in countless different ways.

What's your favorite place on campus and what makes it special to you?

When you have been at an institution as long as I have, meaningful memories exist everywhere you look. Places become special because of the people connected to them. I think of the colleagues I worked with at the original Center for Teaching and Learning in McKusick Hall. I think of the students, faculty and staff who fill our performance and exhibition spaces with creative work, including Colton Hall, Aalfs Auditorium, Wanzek Performance Hall, Farber Hall, Knutson Theatre, the Arena Theatre, the Black Hills Playhouse, the National Music Museum, the John A. Day Gallery, the Oscar Howe Gallery and Gallery 110.

I also think about the quiet—and sometimes not-so-quiet—spaces where the behind-the-scenes work takes place. Practice rooms, the costume shop, the sculpture yard and the dance studio all reflect the countless hours our students dedicate to developing their craft. And perhaps most personally, I think of locker number two in the music wing. For four years, that small space held the accumulated musical materials of my daughter, who graduated from the University of South Dakota in 2025 with a degree in piano performance. 

Being a Coyote means ________. 

Pride in who we are and pride in what we do.