UMass Dartmouth Provost Ramprasad Balasubramanian recently announced that Dr. Philip W. Scher will become the next Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, effective July 31, 2025.

Scher most recently served as the Department Head for Cinema Studies and Theatre Arts and previously served for six years as the Divisional Dean for Social Sciences at the University of Oregon. In the latter position, he successfully led 20 departments and programs that serve over 22% of all undergraduate majors at the flagship campus. At Oregon, Scher fostered cross-disciplinary partnerships to enhance faculty scholarship and creative work, promote academic excellence, and increase student success.

As Dean, Scher established the School for Global Studies and Languages, which combined language and literature departments with International Relations and area studies, attracting significant state investment and external philanthropy. He also expanded the Environmental Studies program and led the creation and expansion of undergraduate programs in Criminology, Latinx Studies, Native American and Indigenous Studies, and Environmental Studies, as well as an accelerated master’s program in Economics. Scher is also a Professor of Anthropology with a research focus on the Caribbean.

Read the full announcement on the UMass Dartmouth website here.