Written by Jamal Tull

Starting today, VSU will be interviewing three candidates for the position of dean of the College of the Arts.

The itinerary for each candidate has been made and includes lunch and a meeting with President William McKinney. It also includes a question and answer session at 3 p.m. on the third floor of the Student Union.

Students are allowed to stay for an hour and present questions to each candidate.

The first person to be interviewed is Thomas Salzman, director of the School of Stage & Screen at Western Carolina University.

Salzman has a strong administrative background with over 30 years of experience in the entertainment industry. He has held a variety of positions including general manager of the Caldwell Theatre Company and the Cape Cod Melody Tent, university department head/director of the College of Santa Fe and Western Carolina University and event coordinator for companies that include General Electric, Heinz USA and President Clinton’s Inauguration Committee.

Salzman will be at VSU today to explore the campus.

The next candidate, Arthur Blake Pearce, will be interviewed on March 26.

Pearce has served as the head of the Department of Art at VSU since 2000.

He is responsible for all of the administrative activities of the department including curriculum oversight and development, scheduling, personnel, budget, accreditation, assessment and planning.

The last candidate, Dr. Robert Knight, will be at VSU for his interview on April 8.

Like his opposing candidates, Dr. Knight is highly qualified for this position.  He currently serves as associate vice chancellor for undergraduate studies at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire. From 2005-2011, Dr. Knight served as a professor and chair of the Department of Music and Theatre.