Hungerford, Gerber reappointed as FAS deans of humanities, social sciences

Professors Amy Hungerford and Alan Gerber have been reappointed as the deans of humanities and social sciences. Both terms are for five years, effective July 1.

Professors Amy Hungerford and Alan Gerber have been reappointed as the deans of humanities and social sciences, respectively, for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS). Both terms are for five years, effective July 1, announced FAS Dean Tamar Gendler.

Amy Hungerford

Amy Hungerford

Hungerford is the Bird White Housum Professor of English and professor of American studies. In her first term as dean, Hungerford helped lead the revision of the FAS Tenure and Appointments Policy, while also guiding the division through a historic level of hiring at both junior and senior levels. She has also taken central responsibility for articulating the physical and intellectual architecture of 320 York St. (formerly the Hall of Graduate Studies), which will serve as the hub for the humanities at Yale upon its expected completion in fall 2020. In addition, Hungerford chairs the University Humanities Strategy Committee, which has been charged by the provost with creating a strategic plan for deploying recent investments in the humanities at Yale.

While serving as dean, Hungerford has remained active as a scholar and teacher. Her most recent book, “Making Literature Now,” was published in 2016, as was her edition of “The Norton Anthology of American Literature: Literature Since 1945.” As dean, she also continued to mentor graduate students and advise dissertations in English, comparative literature, and American studies, and to teach at the acclaimed Bread Loaf School of English.

I have benefited enormously from Amy’s wise counsel,” said Gendler in announcing the appointment. “She has a deep understanding of and commitment to the division of humanities — both intellectually and interpersonally — and an exceptional ability to find solutions where all doors have seemed locked. She is uncompromising in her integrity, boundless in her insight, and gifted in her prose. I learn from her daily.”

Alan Gerber

Alan Gerber

Gerber is the Charles C. and Dorathea S. Dilley Professor of Political Science and professor of economics, of statistics and data science, of health policy and management (public health), and in the Institution for Social and Policy Studies. He is also director of the Center for the Study of American Politics.

As dean, Gerber has led the implementation committee for the revised FAS Tenure and Appointments Policy, played a central role in the transition of the Department of Statistics to the Department of Statistics and Data Science, and facilitated numerous collaborations across departments, especially through the development of a certificate in data science and a new course, “YData: An Introduction to Data Science.” He chairs the provost’s University-Wide Committee on Data-Intensive Social Science, identifying challenges and opportunities across the university. He has also partnered with the division’s departments and programs to facilitate hiring faculty members who pursue research at the boundaries of their disciplines while maintaining a strong commitment to teaching and mentoring both within and beyond the classroom.

Since his appointment as dean, Gerber has published over 20 papers and an award-winning book, “Unhealthy Politics: The Battle over Evidence-Based Medicine,” and he has been elected a fellow of the Society for Political Methodology. His current research focuses on how evidence is used in decision making and public policy and on applying experimental and other statistical methods to study political behavior.

Working alongside Alan has been a pleasure and a privilege,” said Gendler. “He is tireless in his dedication to social science both within and beyond the university, and unmatched in his ability not only to identify areas where Yale can learn from the example of other institutions, but to bring those opportunities from ideas to actualities. I feel fortunate to have him as a colleague.”

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