Dean of Arts and Sciences Jessie Ann Owens decided to step down from her position last week. Her resignation as dean is effective June 30, the end of her three-year term. She said she will return to her previous position of professor of music.Owens' decision not to extend her term as dean of Arts and Sciences after completing her three-year contract is not unprecedented, according to Associate Dean of Arts and Sciences Elaine Wong. "Usually people are dean of Arts and Sciences for three years only," she said.

The dean of Arts and Sciences position was created in the early 1990s. It has previously been filled by Professor Irving Epstein (CHEM) prior to his term as provost and then by Professor Robin Miller (GREA) and Owen's predecessor, Professor Ann Carter (ECON), who served as interim dean.

Owens said she carefully deliberated over whether to extend her term, but finally decided last week that she preferred to return to teaching music. She said she will take a research leave for the 2003-2004 academic year in order to write a book about tonality in English music.

Owens said serving as dean of Arts and Sciences was a stressful and time-consuming position. "It is not uncommon to have worked 10 to 12 hours a day, and sometimes six or seven days a week," she said. "It's a very big job."

Recently, there have been staff changes in the upper levels of the Brandeis administration. Owens said that immediately following Provost Mel Bernstein's sudden resignation in January, she took on added responsibilities. But she said the appointment of Provost Pro Tempore Marty Wyngaarden Krauss a few weeks later did help to ease her increased workload.

As dean, Owens has also been faced with handling the University's recent budget cutbacks. She said, however, that the fiscal situation did not play a part in her decision to step down as dean. "I think all institutions face budget problems right now, and I'm grateful to the department chairs for being so collaborative. I think we were actually able to make the cuts without doing harm to Arts and Sciences," she said.

Owens' colleagues said they greatly respect the work she has during her term as dean. "I always found her a very capable, sharp senior academic administrator who has a real commitment to Brandeis and a deep commitment as students," Executive Assistant to the President John Hose said.

Many new initiatives have been made during Owens' term as dean, including raising faculty salaries before the recent budget crunch. The dean of Arts and Sciences also helps to conduct faculty searches, and Owens said she was pleased by the new hires made during her service. "I think one of the things I'm most proud of is that in the first two years I was dean, 20 percent of the faculty that we hired were faculty of color. It was a very balanced group in terms of gender - half men and half women - so I've seen some progress on the diversity front and that's something that's really important to me," she said.

According to Krauss, who described Owens as "an extremely hard-working dean," the search for Owens' replacement could begin shortly. She added the Faculty Senate will be involved in the search and that "typically Brandeis asks someone who is a tenured full professor of the faculty to serve as dean of Arts and Sciences."

Owens said she applied for the dean position three years ago because she hoped to make a difference at Brandeis. While Carter, then the outgoing dean, gave notice of her plans to step down at Thanksgiving, Owens said the process of choosing a possible replacement did not occur until April or May. Therefore, she said, it is not unreasonable for a search committee to find a replacement dean by June 30. "I certainly won't be involved in helping choose the next dean, but I will be involved in helping the transition," she added.

Owens said that serving as dean of Arts and Sciences was a rewarding experience and added she appreciates the assistance her office colleagues provided during her term. "It's been a privilege to be in this position, and I'm excited by all we were able to accomplish, because I think it's very collaborative, and I wish all of my colleagues lots of luck," she said. "And I'm not going away. I'll still be a member of the faculty.