Russell Yeany

1994-1999

Russell Yeany was named interim dean in 1991 when Dean Al Buccino took a year leave of absence for a post in Washington, D.C. When Buccino retired, Yeany was appointed dean in 1994.

Yeany, who came to UGA as a young assistant professor of science education in 1975, had served as department head and Director of the College’s School of Teacher Education before becoming dean. He enjoyed strong faculty and staff support and was highly respected across the UGA campus as well as in the field of science education.

Yeany set two major goals as a signature for the College – excellence and recognition. He sought to raise the national and international profile of the College by improving the quality of new faculty hired and bringing in the best graduate students.

To accomplish this, Yeany worked to provide an environment of support, trust and high expectations that drew top-notch faculty. He worked to increase faculty support and opportunities for faculty promotion. His administration was particularly known for its open door policy.

As the internet emerged, Yeany encouraged the College to develop a web-site and an on-line newsletter. He also led the College to be an early pioneer in online course offerings.

The College grew under Dean Yeany in stature and excellence. During his tenure, its overall graduate program was always ranked among the Top 20 in the nation by U.S. News and World Report and several individual programs were ranked among the 10 best in the nation.

Faculty authorship of research papers in the most respected journals of their disciplines continued to rise as well as faculty leadership in national and international organizations.

Under Yeany’s leadership, the College implemented a diversity initiative in 1994 that sought to broaden the gender, race and culture of its faculty, students and curriculum. By creating the Task Force for Multicultural Education, the College became a multicultural pioneer for the whole university. Through these efforts, the College becoming a much more internationally known and respected institution.

Yeany also encouraged his faculty to pursue more collaborative, multi-disciplinary projects across campus. He helped lead the creation of a unique partnership between the colleges of Education and Arts & Sciences in 1996 to improve teaching and learning at UGA.

The Dean’s Forum resulted in a variety of collaborative projects that explored issues such as course and curriculum design, the nature and quality of instruction in university courses, learning theories relevant to college-age learners, the role of the university in teacher preparation, and the university's role in the P-16 Initiative--a statewide, community-based approach to reforming preschool through secondary education that was introduced by Gov. Zell Miller in 1995.

Yeany also took a stand that qualitative research was viable and belonged in educational psychology instead of being scattered piecemeal throughout the College.

Yeany served as editor or the prestigious Journal of Research in Science Teaching, from 1984-89.

He retired in 1999 as professor and dean emeritus.