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Syracuse University Provost Gretchen Ritter has convened a Human Dynamics Task Force to take on the “reimagination” of the university’s human dynamics departments, according to a Thursday SU News release.

The university announced that the David B. Falk College of Sport and Human Dynamics would become the David B. Falk College of Sport in April. A task force was established in March 2023 with plans of “elevating” the Department of Sport Management within the school. At the time, the university had not made plans to establish a similar committee for human dynamics.

“The human dynamics programs have played an important role in the history of our University, and have had a significant impact on the communities they serve,” Ritter said in the release. “With the transformation of Falk College comes a unique opportunity to take a thoughtful approach to ensuring the future success of these programs and the continuation of that legacy.”

The Falk restructuring left students and faculty in the human dynamics departments with uncertainty about their futures. At the time, a professor in the School of Social Work told The Daily Orange the decision was made “surreptitiously,” with faculty receiving no notice of the changes prior to the April announcement.

During an April 30 University Senate meeting, Jeremy Jordan, dean of Falk College, said the task force would include representatives selected by members of each of the human dynamics departments.

The departments — Human Development and Family Science, Social Work, Public Health and Marriage and Family Therapy — will be the focus of the task force. It will work “with the aim of positioning them for future success by leveraging opportunities and expanding impact,” the release states.

The task force is comprised of the following members:

• Lois Agnew, SU’s associate provost for academic programs (co-chair)
• Rachel Razza, the associate dean for human dynamics at Falk College (co-chair)
• Colleen Cameron, a professor of practice of human development and family science in Falk College
• Marcelle Haddix, SU’s associate provost for strategic initiatives
• Jody Levison-Johnson, member of the Falk College Advisory Board
• Melissa Luke, a dean’s professor in the School of Education
• Kenneth James Marfilius, Falk College’s assistant dean for online and distance education and associate teaching professor of social work
• Sharon Owens, deputy mayor of the city of Syracuse
• Ian Richardson, Falk College’s assistant director of undergraduate admissions
• Ann Rooney, Onondaga County’s deputy executive for human services
• Tracey Reichert Schimpff, a member of the Falk Faculty Council and associate teaching professor and graduate director of marriage and family therapy
• Merril Silverstein, a professor of human development and family science and Marjorie Cantor Professor of Aging Studies at Falk College
• Yvonne Smith, an associate professor of social work in Falk College
• Maureen Thompson, associate professor and undergraduate director of public health in Falk College
• Dyane Watson, a professor of practice and chair of marriage and family therapy at Falk College
• Ryan O. Williams, the associate dean of the College of Professional Studies

The task force first met on May 28. It will continue to work throughout the summer before submitting a final report to Ritter by the end of October, according to the release.

Published on June 7, 2024 at 3:53 pm

Contact Ahna: arflemin@syr.edu