Next year’s transition at the USC Rossier School of Education

Message to USC Rossier School of Education Faculty and Staff

From: Michael W. Quick, Provost and Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs

May 24, 2019

I write to inform you that Dean Karen Gallagher has shared with me her decision to step down as dean at the end of the academic year, effective on June 30, 2020. I am so grateful that she will remain this year to continue to skillfully lead USC Rossier, as she has for the last 19 years.

Dean Gallagher is a leader at USC, a strong partner with all of you, and a trusted advisor to many of us. She is an innovator in her field and holds a strong presence in the education profession nationally.

During her tenure, Dean Gallagher has established or transformed a number of degree programs, including the launch of USC Rossier’s groundbreaking online version of its Master of Arts in Teaching degree, the first of its kind from a major research university. Ten years later, USC Rossier has prepared more than 4,000 teachers, 78% of whom work in high-needs schools. She also led the launch of the groundbreaking education doctorate for practitioners, the education leadership or EDL program. More than 77 alumni of this program are superintendents in school districts throughout California.

She brought together and oversaw the USC Rossier team that developed and opened USC Hybrid High School and four other schools in Los Angeles and Orange counties. The students in these high schools are from low-income families and most of the graduating seniors will be first-generation college attendees.

Dean Gallagher’s distinguished career also has included her collaboration on teacher preparation improvement, joining with other education leaders to form Deans for Impact, an organization that aims to improve educator preparation through data-driven initiatives.

Since she will remain dean for another year, we will celebrate her many accomplishments in the months ahead, as we will also celebrate the centennial of USC Rossier.

A search for a new dean of USC Rossier will begin in the Fall after we select a faculty advisory committee to guide the process. Dean Gallagher will return to the faculty after a sabbatical starting in Fall 2020.

I have shared Dean Gallagher’s intentions with President Wanda Austin and President-elect Carol Folt, and they join me in expressing their gratitude to her. We all wish her continued success this year.

Cc: Wanda Austin
Carol Folt
President’s Cabinet
Academic Senate
Academic Deans
Provost’s Cabinet