A message from the interim dean

Greetings, Tulane SoPA Community!
 
A few weeks ago, I celebrated my seventh year at the Tulane School of Professional Advancement (SoPA), which was known back in 2017, as the School of Continuing Studies (SCS).  My charge as the associate dean for academic affairs was to help improve the quality of our existing academic programs, build new academic programs, and set the strategy and vision for online education at our school.   Since then, I have been very fortunate to be part of a strong team that has transformed the school from SCS to SoPA, where we offer high-quality programs taught by talented faculty who are all accomplished in their field.  We keep our students’ needs at the center of everything that we do from recruitment to graduation while upholding our mission to serve a diverse population in New Orleans and beyond.
 
Being a part of the Tulane community has been a gift.  I am very excited – and grateful – for the opportunity to serve as the interim dean of Tulane SoPA.  As I have said to some of the folks in the school, we will not skip a beat when it comes to school operations and serving our students, inside and outside of the classroom.  I know there are areas we can still improve. As an organizational psychologist and educator, I enjoy facilitating positive change — helping individuals, teams, and organizations to reach their potential.  In the coming weeks, I will go on a listening tour to get input from our stakeholders and work with SoPA leaders to craft a plan to keep moving us forward and getting better.  With our amazing team in place, I hope to continue building on the momentum and great work we have done.  
 
Looking forward,
Ilianna

Ilianna H. Kwaske, Ph.D.  
Interim Dean
Sr. Professor of Practice 

Read President Fitt’s announcement here.