College of Letters & Science Dean Gary Sandefur has named Gery Essenmacher Associate Dean of Student Academic Affairs (SAA) in the College of Letters & Science following a national search to fill the position. He has served as Interim Associate Dean since November 2010.
Essenmacher (MS ’74, PhD ’76) assumes leadership of the largest student academic services unit at UW‐ Madison. L&S Student Academic Affairs provides college‐level academic and career advising, diversity and academic enrichment programs, scholarship management and official academic actions for over 17,000 undergraduates in UW‐Madison’s largest college.
Essenmacher joined the College in 1984 as an advisor and faculty associate in the Department of Chemistry. He previously served as Interim Associate Dean and Interim Director of Undergraduate Academic Services –now a part of the L&S Academic & Career Advising Center. Essenmacher is a highly respected senior member of the campus advising community with substantial insight into undergraduate academic needs and services at the department and campus levels.
“Gery’s brings many years of excellence in leadership and service to his role as Associate Dean,” Sandefur said. “He has been instrumental in leading the transformation of advising services as part of the Madison Initiative for Undergraduates. He brings a strong combination of advising and managerial skills to the position.”
Most first‐year students enter the university through Letters & Science or are served in some way by one of its units. SAA has a campus‐level mission and includes the L&S Academic and Career Advising Center, Center for Academic Excellence, Academic Information unit, Academic Deans’ Services, Undergraduate Research Scholars Program, the L&S Scholarships Office, and the Cross-College Advising Service.
At the campus level, Essenmacher is a member of the campus committee that is studying advising issues on campus in light of the Madison Initiative for Undergraduates and is involved in the search for the new Director of Advising position. He is also a member of the cross-campus Council on Academic Advising, where he has helped to link the department, college, and campus advising perspectives. He was the co-chair of the L&S Advisor Consortium from 2004 to 2009.
“There are so many opportunities to positively impact advising and student services in the College including an increased emphasis on integrating academic and career advising, new MIU resources and collaborations across L&S departments and campus, the new Director of Advising position and office, and new efficiencies and services arising from resource constraints,” Essenmacher said. “I am truly honored and extremely excited to work with staff, faculty, and students within L&S and across campus in this position.”
In 2001, Essenmacher received the Student Personnel Association’s Norman Bassett Award for excellence in service to students. In 1998, he received the College of Letters and Sciences Academic Advising Award. He holds graduate degrees in chemistry from UW‐Madison (MS ’74, PhD ’76).