Dr. Shawn Wahl’s vision for the future of the College of Arts and Letters (COAL) starts with celebrating its past.

Wahl, a professor and the head of the department of communication at Missouri State University since 2012, was named interim dean of COAL in April.

“We’re talking about decades of great leadership at Missouri State and COAL,” Wahl said. “We’ll continue to expand and build on the foundation that’s made the college what it is today.”

He will serve as interim dean for two years. During that window, the college will conduct a national search for a permanent dean.

An internal search for an interim communication department head is underway. Wahl’s replacement will serve in that role for two years, concurrent with Wahl’s appointment.

Wahl’s duties begin officially July 1 when the current dean, Dr. Gloria Galanes, retires.

Strong academic credentials

Wahl brings extensive experience in academia to the interim dean role. He has a national profile in research, focused on communication education, college teaching, university leadership and intercultural dimensions of higher education.

Under his leadership, the department of communication earned the Outstanding Undergraduate Communication Program Award at the Central States Communication Association conference in 2015.

He earned a doctorate from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 2003, a master’s degree from Texas Tech University in 1999 and a bachelor’s degree from Angelo State University in 1997.

Prior to coming to Missouri State, Wahl was a professor of communication and head of the department of communication at Angelo State, and director of graduate studies at Texas A&M.

He has written several books and completed a management development program fellow experience at Harvard in 2016.

“We want to be a destination campus”

When he looks ahead to the next two years, Wahl has a distinct vision for what he wants to accomplish. Student recruitment and retention will be keys, and so will making Missouri State an obvious choice for future students.

“The other big goal is visibility,” he said. “We’ll set goals and think big. We want to be a destination campus.”

His predecessors laid the groundwork to achieve that goal, Wahl said.

“I want to tell COAL stories about the years of work people have put in prior to me being here,” he said. “I have really admired Dr. Galanes’ work as dean. I’m excited to be a champion for all of the departments in COAL.”

For more information, contact Wahl at 417-836-4423.