The start of the summer brings new leadership to the College of Education. Provost John Antel named UH Professor Robert McPherson as dean of the college.
“I am very grateful for the confidence expressed in me by Provost Antel and the faculty,” McPherson said. “In face of the looming state budget cuts, the faculty and I will be developing a new business model for strengthening our academic programs and for scaling the impact of our research efforts.”
McPherson succeeds Dean Robert Wimpelberg who served as dean for 11 years. He will stay on as faculty and lead a new community-wide “cradle to career” venture.
Formerly the executive associate dean, McPherson oversaw the college’s academic affairs, business operations and administrative support services. He is a previous chair of the department of educational psychology and director of training of counseling psychology.
“Dr. McPherson is our ideal next dean,” says Wimpelberg. “He has the skills sets required for the future of the College: he knows business planning and he will emphasize innovation to will keep the College competitive.”
The College of Education at the University of Houston enrolls approximately 2,500 undergraduate and graduate students. Undergraduate majors include human development and family studies, health and interdisciplinary studies. Its innovative programs include the teachHouston and QUEST programs, the Executive Education Doctorate in professional and Allied Health Education and Administration.
McPherson has led or been honored by many prestigious organizations. Among these honors: he is a fellow of the American Psychological Association and the American Education Research Association. He also is past president of the Texas and Houston Psychological Associations, and former chair of the national Council of Counseling Psychology Training Programs. McPherson has been inducted into the National Academies of Practice. His state and national contributions to advocacy efforts for psychologists and patients earned him the American Psychological Association's Karl Heiser Award.