CLEVELAND -- Derrick Best has joined Case Western Reserve University as assistant dean of graduate studies, effective August 14.Posted 9-14-00
CLEVELAND -- Derrick Best has joined Case Western Reserve University as assistant dean of graduate studies, effective August 14.
Best comes to CWRU from the University of Maryland at College Park, where he served as director of undergraduate student affairs in the College of Arts and Humanities.
"Derrick brings a robust background in all aspects of academic affairs at the undergraduate level as well as experience in admissions," said Joyce Jentoft, vice provost and dean of graduate studies, in announcing the appointment. "He has a strong background in computer skills that will aid the Office of Graduate Studies in its goals of electronic submission of theses and dissertations, and in further computerizing the processes in the office."
For approximately five years, Best has sought "to find new ways of incorporating all sorts of technological tools" in his professional activities in academic advising. Among these tools have been Web page design, database development, statistics analysis, and statistical modeling.
"Before you can make any decision, you need to know who your students are," Best said. "You need to have sophisticated measurement tools."
Among his technical skills are Web programming in Visual Basic, Java, and PERL; using the SPSS and SAS statistical analysis programs; and using database programs such as Access, FoxPro, and FileMaker Pro.
This wide-ranging technical background can help develop services which graduate students can use for personal or professional growth.
Best also plans to offer a variety of workshops on topics including adjusting to graduate life, live after graduate school, and how to compete successfully for assistance such as travel grants, fellowships, and post-doctoral appointments.
In addition to his work at the University of Maryland at College Park, Best also served as the pre-med advisor and director of pre-professional studies at Drexel University.
At Maryland, he helped the associate dean with recruiting graduate students. He plans to engage in similar activities here.
"I'm a big believer in research universities," Best said. "CWRU has so many departments that are so good at the sub-disciplines that are at the cutting edge of each discipline." He added that he is eager to share these impressions with CWRU's potential graduate enrollees.
He encourages graduate students to contact him with their comments, including calling him or visiting his office. "I hope graduate students will see me as a resource, or a sounding board, for issues that they have."
Best received his B.A. in history and economics from Maryland and his M.A. in history from Brown University. His graduate focus was Latin American and Portuguese-African history.
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