KU executive leaving for Georgia State University

Sara Rosen, who has been Kansas University’s senior vice provost for academic affairs since 2011, will soon be leaving for Georgia State University, where she will take over as dean of the College of Liberal Arts.

Georgia State made that official announcement July 18. Her new appointment takes effect Aug. 17.

Rosen has worked at KU for 25 years and most recently served as interim provost and executive vice chancellor after Jeff Vitter resigned as provost to become chancellor of the University of Mississippi. KU’s former business dean, Neeli Bendapudi, took over the provost position on July 1.

Sara Rosen

“Sara Rosen has been an incredible mentor and colleague to so many at KU,” Bendapudi said. “Her leadership and contributions of time and talent have steadily guided the university through some truly great opportunities, including implementing our Bold Aspirations Strategic Plan. She has always held a deep concern for students and always makes time to listen. I know she is going to do great things at Georgia State. They are lucky to have her.”

As senior vice provost at KU, Rosen oversaw undergraduate studies, graduate studies, student affairs, international programs, online and distance learning, and institutional compliance.

Before that, she was chair of the linguistics department for seven years and dean of graduate studies for four years.

Located in Atlanta, Georgia State was founded in 1913. It reported total undergraduate and graduate enrollment of 32,082 in the fall of 2015. Its athletic teams compete in the Sun Belt Conference.

“President (Mark) Becker and I look forward to working with Dr. Rosen and welcome her to our leadership team,” GSU Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost Risa Palm said in a statement announcing Rosen’s hiring. “We have great confidence in her potential to lead through the coming years.”