As of August 2018, Eric Hunter, Ph.D. will take on a new role as the Research Dean for the College of Communication Arts and Sciences.
Hunter most recently held the position of Associate Dean for Special Projects in the Department of Communicative Sciences and Disorders as well as the Director of the Trifecta Initiative, a joint research initiative of the College of Engineering, College of Nursing and ComArtSci.
In a statement to the College on his new role, Hunter said:
I am thrilled to be a part of such a wonderfully eclectic, academically strong College.
The foundational purpose of Michigan State University as this country's primary land grant institution was to expand the availability of a practical education. I believe that student involvement in research provides an ideal educational model for this purpose.
My aim as an educator has been to help students develop an intuition so they see the principles which I teach in the classroom come alive in the world around them. By involving students in our mentored research, their classroom education is reinforced by allowing them to experientially discover the same principles in a laboratory setting. Further, they get valuable real-world experience with interdisciplinary collaborations and team dynamics.
Thus, research provides an opportunity for practical education to help the world in a practical way, whether that research is in scientific or creative disciplines. Instead of viewing research as a theoretical, academic diversion, research in reality can be the tool for a practical, hands-on education.
Regardless of the dollar amount, I believe that every research project can have supporting partnerships, whether community, commercial or government supported. The process of thinking in terms of developing those types of partnerships in research proposals, helps to clarify our thinking and ground our plans in practical real-world purposes.
My goal in serving the College in this capacity is to be an asset to all members when it comes to this process.
Hunter takes over the position from Kami Silk, Ph.D. who will take on a new opportunity as Chairperson of the Department of Communication at the University of Delaware.