Search committee named for Law School dean

The process of selecting the next dean of the Vanderbilt School of Law is under way. Provost Thomas G. Burish has appointed a 10-member committee to search for a successor to John Costonis, who announced in August he plans to retire as dean at the end of the current academic year and return to teaching.

Donald C. Langevoort, the Lee S. and Charles A. Speir Professor of Law, is serving as chair of the search committee and expects to call the group's first meeting soon.

In addition to advertising the post in national legal and educational publications, Langevoort expects numerous referrals from colleagues nationwide.

"We will sift through leads offered by colleagues about people who are both good scholars and potentially good administrators to consider bringing in as head of the Law School," he said.

"We will make lots and lots of phone calls and talk to people all around the country to find out whom they think would make a good dean. If we hear a name over and over, we will no doubt approach that person to see if there is any interest in applying for the position."

Langevoort expects as many as five or six finalists to be invited to visit the campus before the committee issues a recommendation to the Provost.

"There may be a unanimous preference for one candidate among the committee, in which case we might recommend that candidate to the Provost over the others. Or there could be a greater range of opinion among the committee, in which case we might simply recommend several candidates for consideration without ranking them."

Langevoort adds he hopes a new dean can be installed before the beginning of the 1996-97 school year.

Other members of the committee are John S. Beasley II, vice chancellor for alumni and development; Rebecca L. Brown, professor of law; Jonathan I. Charney, professor of law; James W. Ely, professor of law and professor of history; Barry Friedman, professor of law; David F. Partlett, professor of law and senior fellow, Vanderbilt Institute for Public Policy Studies; Richard H. Sinkfield, member, Vanderbilt University Board of Trust; Mark Wait, dean, Blair School of Music and professor of music; and Nicholas S. Zeppos, professor of law.