Quick Navigation

Northern Illinois University

NIU Office of Public Affairs


News Release

Contact: Joe King, NIU Office of Public Affairs
(815) 753-4299

July 6, 2005

NIU appoints interim, acting deans
in colleges of Business, Liberal Arts and Sciences

DeKalb — A pair of longtime faculty members and administrators has stepped in to lead two of Northern Illinois University's largest colleges while the university mounts national searches to find new deans.

Bill Tallon has been named interim dean of the NIU College of Business following the departure of Dean David Graf, while Joe Grush was tapped as acting dean for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences upon the death of Dean Frederick Kitterle. Both appointments were formally approved by the Board of Trustees at its meeting of June 16.

“We are truly lucky to have two such outstanding individuals at the ready to guide these colleges through transitional times,” said NIU President John Peters.

Tallon is a two-time alumnus of the NIU College of Business, having earned a bachelor's degree in management in 1974 and an MBA in 1979. He went on to earn a doctorate from the University of Iowa and then taught operations management and decision systems for three years at the University of Virginia.

He returned to NIU as part of the faculty in 1990 to teach in the Operations Management and Information Systems Department of the business school. Two years later he was named chair of the department and guided it through a period of explosive, market-driven growth. The program grew from 46 students when he took over, to more than 400 OMIS majors when he stepped down as chair nine years later.

In 2001 Tallon become associate dean of the NIU College of Business, helping to direct the day-to-day management of the college and participating in strategic planning for the future. He was appointed interim dean of the college in June by the NIU Board of Trustees, taking over for the retiring David Graf.

Among his priorities, Tallon says, will be retaining top faculty, improving communication within the college and cultivating stronger ties with alumni.

Tallon will guide the college while the university conducts a national search to fill the dean's chair on a full-time basis.

Like Tallon, Grush arrived on the NIU campus in the 1970s, accepting a position as an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology in 1974, shortly after completing his graduate work at the University of Illinois. An active and productive scholar, Grush published articles in several top journals, guided 10 Ph.D. candidates and oversaw nine master's theses.

He chaired the Psychology Department from 1987 until 1991 and had just been appointed to a second four-year term in that role when he was named acting associate dean for budget and personnel. One year later he was selected to fill the role on a full-time basis and has since been twice reappointed. In that role he has handled all matters related to the college's budget of more than $40 million and directed the delicate chess game that ensures that there are enough teachers to teach all of the classes students require from the university's largest college.

As acting dean, Grush is looking forward to working with the college's advisory committee to enhance fundraising efforts, to having increased involvement in teacher certification programs, and to participating in decisions regarding sabbaticals, tenure and promotions.

# # #