Margaret Devaney selected as RU College of Visual and Performing Arts dean

Following a national search and a series of candidate interviews and presentations on campus, Margaret Devaney has been selected to serve as the next dean of Radford University’s (RU) College of Visual and Performing Arts (CVPA).

Devaney currently serves as the chair of the RU Department of Dance, a position she has held since 1985. Devaney will begin her tenure as dean on July 1, 2014.

"Margaret Devaney stood out in an impressive and competitive field of candidates for this position," said RU President Penelope W. Kyle. "Her dedication to RU has proven to be second-to-none and her vision for the future of the College of Visual and Performing Arts will ensure students receive a superior education in all the arts disciplines. She is a proven asset to our campus and we look forward to the energy and enthusiasm she will bring to her new role as dean."

"I want to sincerely thank the members of the CVPA Dean Search Committee for their great efforts to successfully conclude this search,” said RU Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Sam Minner. “Many highly qualified applicants were considered for this important position and the committee demonstrated extraordinary commitment and dedication to the task,” Minner added.

In addition to her role as a department chair at RU, Devaney has served as interim CVPA dean (2010-11), a professor of dance (since 2000) and associate professor of dance (1985-2000).

Before joining the RU faculty, Devaney served as an assistant professor of dance at West Virginia University (1979-85) and an instructor of dance at Auburn University (1978-79).

Devaney earned a Master of Fine Arts in choreography and performance at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1978. She earned her Bachelor of Arts in English literature and sociology at the State University of New York at Albany in 1973.

CVPA prides itself on the combination of artistic and academic excellence across all of the arts disciplines. Students in all CVPA programs – art, dance, interior design and fashion, music, and theatre and cinema - work closely with accomplished and renowned faculty who serve as outstanding mentors and professional role models. The college also presents an outstanding calendar of events on an annual basis that provides the campus and community with a rich, vibrant variety of plays, exhibits, dance performances, design and fashion shows, concerts as well as outreach activities.