Finalists Named for Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs

The University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO) has announced four finalists for the position of Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs.

The finalists, who were identified following a national search process, will be making visits to the UNO campus in the coming weeks and will take part in public forums on the following days:

• Monday, Sept. 12
• Friday, Sept. 16
• Monday, Sept. 19
• Monday, Sept. 26

Each forum will take place in person at the Milo Bail Student Center as well as online via Zoom [link].

At the forums the candidates will have the opportunity to speak to their expertise, backgrounds, and their vision for the future of UNO’s academic programs. Those in attendance and online will have a chance to ask questions of the candidates as well.

John Bartle, Ph.D., dean of the College of Public Affairs and Community Service and chair of the search committee, said that the four finalists demonstrated alignment with UNO’s values; a wealth of academic and administrative experience; and forward-thinking approaches to support the university’s academic mission.

Meet the Finalists

Meera Komarraju, Ph.D.

Sept. 12 | 3 P.M. | Milo Bail Student Center Nebraska Room

Zoom Link: https://nebraska.zoom.us/j/95059216710

Meera Komarraju, Ph.D., currently serves as provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at Southern Illinois University in Carbondale (SIU). She is also a professor of psychology at SIU. She has been a member of the SIU faculty since 2003 and has served in a number of roles including as director of the undergraduate psychology program, chair of the Department of Psychology, associate dean for student and curricular affairs for the College of Liberal Arts and then dean of the college. Komarraju took on the role of provost and academic affairs in 2018. She holds doctorates in applied social psychology from the University of Cincinnati and in industrial-organizational psychology from Osmania University in India.

Ni (Phil) He, Ph.D.

Sept. 16 | 3 P.M. | Milo Bail Student Center Nebraska Room

Zoom Link: https://nebraska.zoom.us/j/95059216710

Phil He, Ph.D., currently serves as a professor of criminology and criminal justice and vice provost of faculty diversity at Northeastern University. He previously served as vice provost for faculty affairs and vice provost for graduate education, all at Northeastern. He received a law degree from Xiamen University (China) and Ph.D. in criminal justice from the University of Nebraska at Omaha. He was a faculty member at the University of Texas-San Antonio before joining Northeastern University in 2003.

Dennis M. Rome, Ph.D.

Sept. 19 | 3 P.M. | Milo Bail Student Center Nebraska Room

Zoom Link: https://nebraska.zoom.us/j/95059216710

Dennis M. Rome, Ph.D., currently serves as special assistant to the president for community engagement and strategic partnerships at Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago. He previously served as provost and vice president for academic affairs as well as interim vice president for student affairs, also at Northeastern Illinois University. He has also served as associate dean and professor of the Colleges of Letters and Sciences at Columbus State University; as associate provost and associate vice chancellor for academic affairs at University Wisconsin-Parkside; as well was as a professor of criminal justice and chair of the Department at Criminal Justice, also at the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. He has also taught in the Department of Afro-American Studies and Department of Criminal Justice at Indiana University and in the Department of Sociology at Wright State University. Rome earned his bachelor’s degree from Bradley University in Peoria, Illinois, his master’s degree from Howard University in Washington, DC, and his Ph.D. from Washington State University in Pullman, Washington. All his degrees are in Sociology.

Sally Wallace, Ph.D.

Sept. 26 | 3 P.M. | Milo Bail Student Center Nebraska Room

Zoom Link: https://nebraska.zoom.us/j/95059216710

Sally Wallace, Ph.D., currently serves as dean of the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies (AYSPS) at Georgia State University, a professor of economics at Georgia State University, and as an extraordinary professor of the African Tax Institute at the University of Pretoria, RSA. Her previous roles include director of AYSPS’ Fiscal Research Center, chair of the Department of Economics, associate dean for research and strategic programs, and the provost at the University of Grand Bassam, Cote d’Ivoire. Wallace has also served as a financial economist at the U.S. Treasury as well as serving on tax reform commissions in several U.S. states and as resident chief of party for the USAID sponsored tax reform project in Moscow. She earned her Ph.D. in economics at Syracuse University and graduated with a B.A. in economics from William Smith College.

More About the Search

In May 2022, Chancellor Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA, named a 12-person search committee to identify UNO's next Senior Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs following the departure of Sacha Kopp, Ph.D.

The committee, which is led by the dean of the College of Public Affairs and Community Service, features representation from across campus and the community, including representation from faculty, students, and staff. The committee worked with Diversified Search Group to identify high-quality candidates who fit UNO’s search prospectus that was developed following campus forums held earlier this summer.

More information about the candidates, forums, candidates, and search committee can be found at search.unomaha.edu/svcaa.