MEMORANDUM
To:
FIU Community
From:
Ronald M. Berkman, Executive Vice President & Provost
Date:
October 26, 2007
Re:
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences Appointed
I am pleased to announce that Dr. Kenneth Furton, Professor of Chemistry, has been appointed
Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences effective December 20, 2007. He has served as an
Associate Dean in the College since 2001 with initial responsibility for Budget and Facilities
and subsequently with additional responsibility for Research.
This has been a protracted search process and at the outset I want to express my appreciation to
Interim Dean Mark Szuchman who selflessly stepped into the interim dean's role and agreed to
remain the dean through the Fall 2007 term. His years as an Associate Dean and as Interim
Dean have contributed much to the development of the College as the provider of core
undergraduate curriculum, primary producer of doctoral degrees, and leader in external
funding. Under his stewardship the College has become well positioned to be a major
contributor to the goals of FIU at 50. I believe Professor Furton will be able to build on this
base and exceed our expectations for the future prominence of the College.
Dr. Furton has spent his entire professorial career at FIU. He received a B.S. in Forensic
Science at the University of Central Florida in 1983, a Ph.D. in Analytical Chemistry at Wayne
State University in 1986 and completed post-doctoral studies at the University of Wales,
Swansea, U.K. in 1988 where he was a Lecturer and Senior Research Associate. Since
becoming a faculty member at FIU he has directed the research of more than 100
undergraduate and graduate students, is the author or co-author of more than 100 publications
and has received over $3.5 million in external research support. Prof. Furton's research
program has focused on forensic science and separation science with much of his recent work
focused on studying the chemical basis of detector dog alerts to forensic specimens. Professor
Furton has testified numerous times as an expert witness in local and federal courts in areas
including the use of canines for the detection of drug odors on currency and the detection of
human odor.
During his tenure as the Graduate Program Director in the Department of Chemistry he chaired
the committee that wrote the successful proposal to implement the PhD program in Chemistry.
He is the founding Director of the International Forensic Research Institute (IFRI) and
coordinated the writing of successful proposal to establish the first M.S. in Forensic Science
program in Florida. As Chairperson of Chemistry from 1997 to 2001, he oversaw various
Office of the Provost
University Park .Miami, FL 33199 . Tel 305-348-2151 . Fax 305-348-2994 . www.fiu.edu
Florida International University is an Equal Opportunity/Access Employer and Institution . TDD via FRS 1-800-955-8771
Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences Appointed
October 26, 2007
Page 2
initiatives, including the establishment of the Advanced Mass Spectrometry Facility; the
implementation of Differential Assignment Policies and Procedures; the approval of the first
departmental by-laws and the first long-range goals; and spearheaded a major revision of the
undergraduate curriculum.
As Associate Dean, Dr. Furton established a systematic space allocation policy to help
departments more effectively assign laboratory space based on external funding and the number
of graduate students; implemented an on-line course delivery policy resulting in an increase in
annual enrollments from a handful of courses to nearly 300 courses in 2007 and annual
enrollments of more than 12,000; established and managed a policy on indirect (F&A) return to
departments and PIs, streamlining the operations of the Research Office and implementing a
policy on academic year buy-out, which helped increase the College's salary savings from
approximately $40,000 in 2005 to $400,000 in 2007.
Notable awards Dr. Furton has received include the 1986 Boltz Award in Analytical Chemistry,
1996 International Association of Forensic Sciences Award and the 2005 FIU Council of 100
Outstanding University Professor Award.
I want to thank Leonard Strickman, Dean of the College of Law, who chaired the search
committee. He and his committee colleagues reviewed numerous applications and organized
and hosted many candidate visits. Their work is deeply appreciated.
Please, join me in wishing Dean Furton and the College mutual success.
Office of the Provost
University Park .Miami, FL 33199 . Tel 305-348-2151 . Fax 305-348-2994 . www.fiu.edu
Florida International University is an Equal Opportunity/Access Employer and Institution . TDD via FRS 1-800-955-8771