Three college deans resign during summer

Updated on Monday, September 20 @ 1:00 p.m.

Three deans of the University of Cincinnati's most decorated colleges have resigned within weeks of each other.

Dr. William J. Martin II announced his resignation as dean of the UC College of Medicine effective Aug. 26. The next day, Joseph P. Tomain, dean of the College of Law, announced his intention to resign, effective Oct. 1.

The two resignations were announced days before Stephen T. Kowel resigned as dean of the College of Engineering, following a June announcement that he would step down in September.

All three deans plan to continue stay on as faculty at the university, although neither university provost specified publicly why the deans chose to resign.

"A very significant amount of resources that I expected never materialized," said Kowel, who headed UC Engineering for five years. "I felt I could not do the job I signed on to do."

"With regret, I have accepted his resignation," Anthony Perzigian, senior vice president and provost for baccalaureate and graduate education, wrote in a statement. "He has been a tireless advocate for the College [of Engineering]."

This year UC President Nancy Zimpher announced more than $6 million in operational budget cuts, in addition to outlining her strategic plan "UC|21: Defining the New Urban Research University."

"All of us must pitch in to tighten our belts and unleash our creativity to find new revenues," Zimpher has said.

However, creativity may not be enough in some cases.

"We just don't have the funds... we don't have enough," said Kowell. "[President Zimpher] has to make some tough decisions right now."

"The real problem at UC is they are under-enrolled," he said.

Dr. Martin, who served as dean of the College of Medicine for two years, wrote that he chose to resign after "Jane Henney MD, [UC] Senior Vice President and Provost for Health Affairs... informed me of her desire to take the College of Medicine in a new direction." Martin then turned down the newly created position of vice president for research.

"The vice president for research position is new, but not created specifically for Dr. Martin," said David Bracey, UC Medical Center public relations officer. "It's part of President Zimpher's current administrative realignment, in support of the new, comprehensive academic master plan, UC|21."

Bracey declined to elaborate on the "new direction" of the College of Medicine, but issued a prepared statement from Dr. Henney.

"The College of Medicine will continue to move forward, committed to the fundamentals... and to the discovery of new knowledge through research," said Henney.

Henney named Dr. Ronald A. Sacher as interim dean of the College of Medicine effective Sept. 7, while Perzigian named Roy Eckart, engineering senior associate dean, as Kowell's temporary replacement.

Perzigian has named Associate Dean Donna Nagy as the interim law dean effective Oct. 1, when Tomain is to step down.

Tomain "did much to build the stature of UC's College of Law... throughout the nation," said Perzigian.

In a published statement Tomain said, "[W]e have been able to recruit and serve a wonderful student body through the exemplary efforts of our staff and our faculty."

However, neither specified why Tomain, who has presided over the law college for 15 years, chose to step down.

Information had been published in the Cincinnati Enquirer and on the Internet, said Tomain, via telephone, "I think that pretty much covers it."

He declined to comment further.

U.S. News & World Report recently ranked the university's law college as tied for No. 59 best law school in the country.

In 2003 U.S. News & World Report ranked the college No. 51.

The same publication ranked the law school No. 43 during 1998, according to the Cincinnati Post.

While it may be uncommon for three high-profile colleges to lose their deans within such a close proximity, there is precedent for UC to lose three deans in the same year year.

In 2001, the deans of the College of Arts & Science, DAAP and the University Libraries all resigned within a year, said to Greg Hand, university spokesman.

Meanwhile, the search for new deans will begin, said officials.

A university committee will be formed to select replacements for the departing deans.

"It is not uncommon to bring someone from the outside," Hand said, "it is not uncommon to promote somebody from within."

A national search will take place to find Martin's replacement, Henney wrote in a statement.

Doug Pennington contributed to this article.