Dean Torrance Departs for Kansas

After six years in the Freshman Dean’s Office (FDO), Assistant Dean of Freshmen Wendy E.F. Torrance is leaving Harvard and heading for the Kansas City area, where her husband, Andrew, has accepted a position at the University of Kansas Law School.

Her post will be filled by Associate Professor of Slavic Languages and Literatures Sue Brown, who beat out 75 other candidates for the job.

Brown will assume the job of academic and residential dean for students living in Elm Yard, which includes the freshman dormitories Canaday, Matthews, and Weld.

Associate Dean of Harvard College Thomas A. Dingman ’67, who will take over as dean of freshmen when Elizabeth Studley Nathans vacates that post in the coming weeks, commended Torrance for her contributions to Harvard.

“She’s done a wonderful job,” Dingman said. “She has been a real strong team member, and she has been a wise guide for freshmen.”

“And I think the proctors who have worked with her have appreciated her support,” he added.

In addition to expressing admiration for her colleagues in the FDO and the proctors with whom she worked, Torrance called Nathans an invaluable mentor and friend to her family, though she said that her and Nathans’ departures were unrelated.

Torrance, who is also a lecturer in Social Studies, said she would miss her students above all.

“I am going to greatly miss the tremendous intelligence, energy, and enthusiasm they possess,” she said.

Torrance said she has enjoyed her career in academic administration and that she hopes to find a similar position in the coming years.

“I’ve been able to combine close work with students with researching and writing,” she said. “I’d love to continue to do all of those things in the future.”

Torrance’s main interests include international environmental politics, international cooperation, and international institutions and regimes. She completed her Ph.D. dissertation in government at the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in 1999.

During her tenure as assistant dean, Torrance lived in a suite on the first floor of Weld.

“I moved into Weld as a single person, and now I live with my husband and two children,” she said. “It’s been a place where we’ve grown as a family.”

Most recently, Torrance taught Social Studies 98ft, “International Environmental Issues.”

Since Torrance has not yet accepted a new position in Kansas, she will have the opportunity to spend more time with her children, Honor, 3, and Darwin, 1, while she awaits publication of two of her articles in 2005 and 2006.

As far as Torrance’s replacement, Dingman said he has high expectations for Brown, who will oversee one third of the freshman class.

“She comes to us very highly recommended by the faculty and she impressed all of us when she interviewed,” Dingman said. “She’ll be warm and smart, and I think students will find her accessible.”

“She’ll do a wonderful job for Elm Yard,” Torrance said.

—Staff writer Sam Teller can be reached at steller@fas.harvard.edu.