Dr. Gary Miller to serve as director of Southeast Missouri State's River Campus

Southeast Missouri State University music professor Dr. Gary Miller will serve as director of the River Campus School of the Visual and Performing Arts.

The two-year appointment comes as the university considers possible restructuring of the College of Liberal Arts and replacement of Dean Dr. Martin Jones, who retired Wednesday.

Miller also will serve as associate dean of the College of Liberal Arts, supervising the departments of music, art and theater and dance. Those three departments will be housed at the River Campus.

In his new job, Miller, who has taught 26 years at Southeast, will help coordinate the move of faculty members and classes to the new campus overlooking the Mississippi River.

As director, Miller will coordinate the planning of grand-opening festivities, which are expected to be held sometime next fall after the start of classes.

The university plans to hire an associate director of the River Campus to handle the booking and scheduling of events in the various River Campus theaters.

Southeast hopes to hire an associate director by July.

Dr. Chris McGowan, dean of the College of Science and Mathematics, will also serve next school year as interim dean of the College of Liberal Arts.

Provost Dr. Jane Stephens said she wants time to look at the structure of the College of Liberal Arts.

She said it's possible the university could combine the College of Liberal Arts and the College of Science and Mathematics. Many universities have a college of arts and sciences.

But Stephens said nothing has been decided. The university may end up keeping two colleges with two deans.

McGowan said arts and sciences have been the traditional fields of study at the nation's universities. "Classic liberal arts colleges were all arts and sciences," he said.

As dean of both colleges, McGowan will supervise more than 200 faculty. "The toughest part is going to be learning all of the new faulty that I am going to be in charge of," he said.

-- Mark Bliss