Butler County Today

Four finalists have been named as candidates for the position of provost and executive vice president of academic affairs at Miami University. Open forums are scheduled for each.

Elizabeth Mullenix

Open forums Wednesday, Nov. 16

• 9-9:30 a.m., 319 Kreger Hall, Oxford campus
• 10:30-11:00 a.m., 136-137 Johnston Hall, Middletown campus
• 11:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., Wilks Conference Center A, Hamilton campus

Elizabeth Mullenix serves as the interim provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs at Miami University. Mullenix joined Miami in 2006 as chair and professor of Theatre and artistic director/producer of Miami University Theatre. In 2013, she assumed the role of interim dean of the College of Creative Arts and moved into the role permanently in 2014. 

Prior to joining Miami, Mullenix taught theatre history, dramatic literature, and theory for 11 years at Illinois State University, where she also served as the associate chair of the School of Theatre, director of graduate studies, director of the masters program in Theatre, and associate dean for the College of Fine Arts.

Mullenix graduated with a bachelor’s degree in theatre and English from the University of Vermont, and earned a master’s degree in theatre and a doctoral degree in theatre studies from the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign. As a theatre historian, Mullenix writes about Antebellum culture/theatre, cross-dressing, the American Civil War, first wave feminism, and gender/feminist theory.  

Lynn Okagaki

Open forums Friday, Nov. 18

• 9-9:30 a.m., 319 Kreger Hall, Oxford campus
• 10:30-11 a.m., 136-137 Johnston Hall, Middletown campus
• 11:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., Wilks Seminar Room 3, Hamilton campus

Lynn Okagaki is the deputy provost for Academic Affairs at the University of Delaware. She was appointed to this position in 2016 after serving as interim deputy provost and interim director for the Institute of Global Studies in 2015. 

Prior to joining the University of Delaware, Okagaki was Commissioner for Education Research in the Institute of Education Sciences (IES) at the U.S. Department of Education. Okagaki held several positions with the U.S. Department of Education including serving as the first deputy director for science. She has served as associate dean of the School of Consumer and Family Science and professor of child development and family studies at Purdue University and held appointments at Yale University, Cornell University and the University of Houston.

Okagaki received her Bachelor of Science degree in applied behavioral sciences from the University of California at Davis, a master’s degree in Religious Education from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon, and her doctoral degree in developmental psychology from Cornell University.  

Karin Ruhlandt

Open forums Wednesday, Nov. 30

• 9-9:30 a.m., 319 Kreger Hall, Oxford campus
• 10:30-11 a.m., 136-137 Johnston Hall, Middletown campus
• 11:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m., Wilks Seminar Room 3, Hamilton campus

Karin Ruhlandt is a distinguished professor of chemistry and the former dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University. She served as a member of the leadership team and Chancellors’ Council from 2015-2022. During her tenure as dean, she spearheaded the development and execution of Syracuse University’s liberal arts curriculum at East China Normal University for international students. 

Ruhlandt joined Syracuse as an assistant professor of Chemistry in 1991. She was later appointed chair of the Department of Chemistry and interim dean of the College of Arts and Sciences in 2014. She was officially appointed the school’s dean the following year. As dean,, the majority focus of her work was placed on justice, equity, diversity, and inclusion initiatives.

Prior to her appointment as dean, Ruhlandt was a visiting professor and Fulbright Scholar in the Department of Chemistry at Technical University, Graz, Austria, from 2009-2014. Ruhlandt earned a vordiplom (bachelors), diplom (masters), and Dr. rer. nat  (doctorate) in chemistry from Philipps-Universitat-Marburg in her native Germany. 

Jeanette Altarriba

Open forums Friday, Dec. 2

• 12:45-1:15 p.m., 319 Kreger Hall, Oxford campus
• 2:15-2:45 p.m., 136-137 Johnston Hall , Middletown campus
• 3:30-4 p.m., Wilks Conference Center, Hamilton campus

Jeanette Altarriba serves as dean of the College of Arts and Sciences at the University at Albany, State University of New York. She is also a professor of Psychology and a University at Albany Collins Fellow. 

In 1992, Altarriba joined the Department of Psychology at the University at Albany where she has held several positions. Prior to becoming dean, she has served as interim dean and associate dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, chair of the Department of Communications, chair of the Department of Psychology, and vice provost and dean of undergraduate education, among other positions.. Altarriba also served as campus co-chair of the Accreditation Self-Study and Review, as per the Middle States Commission on Higher Education.

Altarriba earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from Florida International University, a master's degree, and a doctorate in cognitive psychology from Vanderbilt University. Her postdoctoral research training was completed at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. Her research interests include psychology of language, psycholinguistics, bilingualism, and cross-cultural psychology.

Candidates' curriculum vitae are available on the Provost Search website.  

Following each candidate’s visit, university community members are invited to provide feedback online until Dec. 5:

Original source can be found here.