Nursing, Business deans planning on retirement soon

Two deans in major schools at Pitt recently announced that they plan to retire in the near future.

Arjang Assad, the Henry E. Haller Jr. Dean of the Joseph M. Katz Graduate School of Business and College of Business Administration, announced his plan to retire on Sept. 22 as the dean effective on June 30, 2022. Assad served as the dean since July 2015, and is stepping down to work as a faculty member. The Office of the Provost is beginning the search for his successor.

He worked to launch Pitt’s Executive MBA in Healthcare program, introduced some of the first online offerings at Katz and developed the certificate in business analytics program. Assad said in an email to the Pitt Business community that he looks back fondly on his time spent as dean.

“Reflecting on my tenure as dean, I have never been prouder of our alumni, students, faculty, and staff whose many talents advance our school, our academic mission, and our purpose to serve the greater good,” Assad said. “During my years at Pitt, I’ve had the privilege to work with some of the brightest minds in the field.” 

Like Assad, Jacqueline Dunbar-Jacob, the dean of the School of Nursing, announced on Sept. 29 her plan to retire effective on June 30, 2023. She will step down from her position on June 20, 2022, and take a 12-month sabbatical before formally retiring. Dunbar-Jacob served as the dean since 2001, and she also works as a professor of psychology, epidemiology and occupational therapy. 

Maureen Lichtveld, the dean of the Graduate School of Public Health, is chairing the search committee for Dunbar-Jacob’s replacement. Lichtveld is assisted by the search firm Russell Reynolds Associates.  

Mometrix Test Preparation named Dunbar-Jacob one of the top 30 influential deans of nursing in the United States in 2015, and under her leadership, the U.S. News & World Report currently ranks Pitt Nursing’s doctoral program in the top 10 nationally and the Bachelor of Nursing program at number seven. She said in a press release that she admires the Pitt Nursing community and the difference they are making in the world.

“I am very proud of the School of Nursing and its faculty, staff and students,” Dunbar-Jacob said. “We have been able to make an impact on education, research and practice both within the region as well as nationally and internationally.”  

A previous version of the story said Arjang Assad served as the dean for 18 months, when he has served as the dean since July 2015. The story has been updated to reflect this change. The Pitt News regrets this error.