MSU College of Education names interim associate deans, department head
Mississippi State’s College of Education is announcing two prominent faculty members as interim associate deans and one long-term educator as an interim department head.
Dean Teresa Jayroe has appointed Daniel Gadke as interim associate dean of research and Kimberly Hall as interim associate dean of academics. She also has named Janice Nicholson interim head of the Department of Curriculum, Instruction and Special Education.
“All three of our interims have a proven track record for success,” Jayroe said. “Their backgrounds in leadership, academics and research will be a huge asset to the college as it continues to grow.”
Jayroe said Gadke will continue to serve as the head of the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Foundations, and the associate professor also retains his role as codirector of the Autism and Developmental Disabilities Clinic. Gadke said he is excited to work with the college on a larger scale to support the individual scholarly and creative works across departments and centers.
A three-time graduate of Illinois State University, Gadke holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in psychology and a doctorate in school psychology. He joined MSU’S faculty in 2013 as an assistant professor and completed his postdoctoral work at the Kennedy Krieger Institute at Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
As she assumes her new role as interim associate dean for academics, Hall will continue serving as professor and head of Msu-meridian’s Division of Education. She will be splitting her time between MSU’S Starkville and Meridian campuses.
Hall said she looks forward to mentoring new faculty and providing necessary support for them to be successful in the classroom, as well as building faculty relationships between departments and the university.
Jayroe said Msu-meridian’s Division of Education has grown exponentially under Hall’s leadership. She is confident that Hall will bring the same qualities for success to the associate dean position.
Hall served as interim division head from August 2017-July 2018 before becoming head of the Division of Education. She was the coordinator of graduate school programs in school counseling at Msu-meridian and an associate professor in the Department of Counseling, Educational Psychology and Foundations from 2011-2013. Hall is a three-time graduate of MSU, with a bachelor’s in educational psychology, master’s in school counseling and a PH.D. in counselor education and supervision.
Nicholson is returning to the role of interim department head of curriculum, instruction and special education. The university’s current Alumna of the Year served in the same position from 2015-2017. Nicholson received her master’s and doctoral degrees in elementary education from MSU in 1967 and 1977, respectively. She also holds an education specialist degree from Vanderbilt University’s Peabody College of Education.
Jayroe said that Nicholson’s experience in higher education and her institutional knowledge will allow her to assist the department’s faculty, staff and students. Over a 50-year career, Nicholson was with the University of North Alabama for 37 years in teaching and administration. She retired from Blue Mountain College, her undergraduate alma mater, as executive vice president for Student Affairs and Graduate and Special Programs in 2012. At MSU, Nicholson also has been recognized as the College of Education’s Alumna of the Year for 2018.