KU professor Clarence Lang to serve as interim liberal arts dean

University of Kansas professor Clarence Lang will serve as interim dean of KU’s College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the university announced Wednesday.

Lang, who serves as the chair of African and African-American studies department, fills in behind former CLAS dean Carl Lejuez, who will become interim provost April 30 after the departure of Neeli Bendapudi.

photo by: University of Kansas

Clarence Lang

The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences enrolls about 60 percent of all students on the Lawrence campus and is home to more than 50 departments and programs, according to KU.

Lang has been interim director of the Hall Center for the Humanities since fall 2017. He was co-chair of a recent KU task force on diversity, equity and inclusion and has been involved in discussions about those issues as they relate to the local criminal justice system, Lawrence schools and the broader community. He began working at KU in spring 2011.

The university’s news releases about the interim appointments of Lang and Lejuez have not specified the next steps for permanently filling the positions.