Syracuse University announced on Wednesday the appointment of the Renée Crown University Honors Program’s new director.

Danielle Taana Smith, a professor of sociology and the Honors Program director at the Rochester Institute of Technology, will lead the Renée Crown program for an initial appointment of five years, with a formal review at three years.

Civil and environmental engineering professor Chris Johnson has been the interim honors program director since July 2016. Stephen Kuusisto, the previous director, stepped down after a five-year term.

“I look forward to the challenges ahead and to working with University partners and the larger Syracuse community,” Smith said in an SU News release issued Wednesday.

Smith will also hold a faculty appointment as a professor in the department of African American studies.

A committee of several distinguished professors was formed to search for a new director, and that search was expected to last well into the fall 2017 semester. Public forums were held as candidates interviewed for the job.

In an interview this past September, Johnson said he was “giving it some thought,” as to whether he would apply for the permanent position. He eventually did, and was a finalist for the position. He participated in a public forum on Nov. 30, 2017. Smith participated in a public forum on Dec. 8, 2017.

A third finalist, professor of history and director of the Honors Program at Concordia University Chicago David Settje, withdrew from consideration for personal reasons, the university announced.

Smith earned a bachelor’s degree in Russian studies from Dartmouth College; a master of business administration from Saint Martin’s College; and a Ph.D. in sociology from the University of South Carolina.

The new director’s expertise include gender studies, population studies and global health and development, according to the press release.

Among other awards, in 2016 Smith was named an Erasmus+ exchange scholar, faculty of pedagogy and social work at Liepaja University in Latvia, per the news release. Erasmus+ is a European Union student exchange program for educational programs across the continent.

“Danielle will further distinguish the honors program as a key component of advancing the University’s academic goals,” said Karin Ruhlandt, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, in the news release. “She has an impressive record of success as a scholar, teacher and administrator, and she has an obvious passion for challenging and inspiring students to strive for intellectual excellence.”

Published on January 31, 2018 at 10:53 pm

Contact Sam: sfogozal@syr.edu | @SamOgozalek