UCLA officials appointed a new senior dean of the College of Letters and Science on Thursday.
Patricia Turner, the current Dean and Vice Provost of undergraduate education, will serve as senior dean for two years, according to an email to faculty and staff from Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Scott Waugh.
She replaced Joseph Rudnick on July 1, according to Waugh’s email. Rudnick also served a two-year term and retired in June.
As senior dean, Turner will be responsible for coordinating the responsibilities of the five College deans, Waugh added in the email. She will represent the College, work with College Development and supervise the Office of the Deans’ staff. Turner will also continue to lead the Division of Undergraduate Education.
Turner became Dean and Vice Provost of the College in 2013, after Judith Smith retired in December 2012.
She is a professor of both African-American studies and world arts and culture and has served on the executive board of the American Folklore Society. She has conducted academic research on racial dynamics in folklore and popular culture and written four books on folklore, African-American culture and quilt history.
Before coming to UCLA, Turner served as UC Davis’ director of African-American and African Studies program from 1998 to 2000 and as interim dean of the Division of Humanities, Arts and Cultural Studies from 2004 to 2006. She was appointed as vice provost for undergraduate education in 1999.