Hawaii Pacific University announced today that David Lanoue, who currently heads the College of Letters and Sciences at Georgia’s Columbus State University, is taking over as dean of the school’s College of Humanities and Social Sciences.

The selection comes after a national search that included candidates from across the country. 

Lanoue, who begins his post at HPU on Aug. 5, has served as dean of the Columbus State college since 2010. Before that, he chaired the political science departments at the University of Alabama, Texas Tech University and the University of California – Riverside.

According to a press release, Lanoue has been known to advocate for developing new graduate programs, expanding research activity and improving retention and graduate rates.

— Alia Wong