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Candace Harmon, Media Relations
NEW DEAN OF THE SCHOOL OF ARTS AND SCIENCES
Dr. Susan Larson, dean and provost of the college, has announced that Dr. Sonja Wentling, professor of history and director of Global Studies, has been appointed to serve as the next dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Concordia. Wentling will begin her three-year term July 11.
“Wentling will bring energy, optimism, and a commitment to relationship-building,” Larson said. “Her passion for the liberal arts and sciences and interdisciplinary education and her commitment to advancing liberal learning at Concordia College in alignment with our strategic commitment to learn-work-lead made her a compelling choice for this role.”
The School of Arts and Sciences was named under the new academic reorganization of the Three Schools One College model implemented by Concordia in 2020.
Wentling looks forward to identifying the strengths, opportunities, and aspirations of the School and help facilitate conversations and assessment activities among departments and interdisciplinary programs.
“I would like to express my gratitude for having been given the opportunity to serve Concordia in this new position and I am excited to join the leadership team of the college,” Wentling said. “The dean is called to infuse the School of Arts and Sciences with a spirit of optimism and support its faculty in new initiatives that will attract more students, create more opportunities for interdisciplinary collaboration, and help preserve the financial health and integrity of its programming.”
As a native Austrian, Wentling grew up in a post-World War II Europe. It was on her first trip to Hungary that she met an American historian who encouraged her to study at his school, Southern Illinois University. That invitation would be the start of her academic career in the U.S.
Wentling, earned a master’s in European history and German from the University of Vienna, Austria, a master’s in American history from Southern Illinois University, and a doctorate in American foreign relations from Kent State University, Kent, Ohio. She came to Concordia in 2003.
Dr. George Connell, the current dean, is leaving his position to return to the faculty.
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