Finding the Dean in Huntsman Hall Will Not be Difficult

Finding the Dean in Huntsman Hall Will Not be Difficult

The dean of the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business does not want to be tucked away in a corner where he will only see those diligent enough to find him. At least that’s one message that came through loud and clear when the staff of the dean’s office and Dean Douglas D. Anderson met with architects recently to discuss how their area would be laid out in the new Huntsman Hall.

The staff and Dean Anderson felt that the original proposal the architects presented would make it too difficult for students and others to find the dean, and moved walls and conference rooms about on paper to make sure that wouldn’t happen. The architects weren’t expecting us to approve their first design but had to give everyone a starting point that would show the number of offices and conference rooms that we had requested so that a discussion could begin on exactly where things should be located. They we very open to our ideas because they want to design an area that will meet our needs and, armed with plenty of feedback, they went back to the drawing boards to refine their proposal.

The dean’s office will actually include several offices, especially the staff and leaders who support the overall efforts of the school such as associate deans, our school business officer, and our marketing and public relations directors. It will also feature some work stations for other support staff, which often include students who contribute in major ways to the progress of the school. I thought we came up with a much better plan that used the space wisely but still kept it open, friendly, and functional.

We have gone through the same process to figure out how we will layout space for our student services and for any centers, like our Center for Entrepreneurial Excellence, we will have in the building. Stay tuned to this space for updates on those areas.

Ken Snyder