Chippewa Valley Times

A new dean has been appointed at the College of Arts and Human Sciences at UW-Stout. Jason Schmitt, who began his tenure in August, was named to the position by Glendalí Rodríguez, UW-Stout provost and vice chancellor for Academic Affairs.

Schmitt is tasked with overseeing 27 undergraduate and 14 graduate programs, along with eight academic departments and the schools of education, art, and design.

“Dr. Schmitt brings wonderful cross-disciplinary skillsets as the college’s leader – including a passion for student success and open access to scientific and academic scholarship. He also brings great polytechnic energy to the university with a background in communication and entrepreneurship,” Rodríguez said.

“I am excited to welcome him to the UW-Stout community and look forward to working with him and CAHS on our goals as Wisconsin’s Polytechnic University,” she added.

Before joining UW-Stout, Schmitt served as interim dean for the School of Arts and Sciences at Clarkson University in Potsdam, N.Y. He also held positions as associate dean of Strategic Development and Recruitment and chair of the department of communication, media, and design for eight years.

Schmitt has focused his academic career on advocating for open access to scientific scholarship. His documentary “Paywall: The Business of Scholarship” has had over 700 public screenings globally and more than 350,000 views online.

He has traveled extensively, discussing with universities, governments, and political leaders about adapting to European Coalition Plan S, which mandates that research outputs be globally accessible from day one of publication.

In 2023, Schmitt joined the ACM US Technology Policy Generative AI Committee Workgroup. This group brought together 15 leaders from organizations such as Health Ethics Trust, Google, Meta/Facebook, Universitat Pompeu Fabra Barcelona, SecureWorks, and Stanford University. They delivered eight principles aimed at fostering fair decision-making concerning AI technologies to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.

“I’m honored to serve this UW-Stout community,” Schmitt said. “Growing up in a Midwestern tool-and-die manufacturing family, the polytechnic roots resonate with my life’s paths, and I know how rare — and needed — applied learning expertise is not only here in Wisconsin but also on a national and global scale.”

Schmitt succeeds Maria Alm who retired after serving 12 years as dean.