As the new dean of the School of Natural Sciences, Mathematics and Engineering, Dr. Jianyu (Jane) Dong sees the unique power and potential of an institution like California State University, Bakersfield.
“CSUB is really a dream place for a leader if you want to make a bigger impact on students and the community,” Dr. Dong said. “As the only four-year institution in Kern County, CSUB plays a very important role in creating education access and career development opportunities. There’s a lot of work to do in the region and there is a significant role CSUB can play, not only on the education side but also within the local community.”
Though officially joining CSUB in July, Dr. Dong said her work really started the moment she accepted the position a few months earlier. She was already meeting with students, faculty and staff in the spring, before she had even received an official CSUB email address. With her goals for the school, she was eager to jump in.
“I am here to grow with NSME and work with our faculty and staff to create a bigger impact on the local community,” she said. “We need to increase the visibility of NSME not only within the region but across the state and the nation. We should be a leader in STEM and health care education. We should be recognized for who we are and what we do for the community.”
While looking for the next NSME Dean, university leaders were impressed with Dr. Dong’s understanding of the Bakersfield community – its specific needs and challenges, its role in the energy and agriculture industries and, most of all, the opportunity CSUB has to transform lives by supporting students.
“Dr. Dong’s devotion to students has been clear from the very start,” said Dr. Vernon Harper, provost and vice president for academic affairs at CSUB. “Her desire to make a difference here at CSUB and in our community is great, and I’m proud to have her as an integral piece of Academic Affairs. Her willingness to roll up her sleeves and dive right into the job before she needed to really told me a lot about the person she is and we are fortunate to have her as the dean of NSME. I look forward to witnessing her impact on our students, faculty and staff as she grows in this role.”
Dr. Dong, who has her Ph.D. in electrical engineering, comes to Bakersfield from Cal State L.A., where she first started as an assistant professor in 2002 before becoming the associate dean of the College of Engineering, Computer Science and Technology in 2015.
Major accomplishments during Dr. Dong’s time as associate dean include overseeing the transition from quarter to semester, developing and launching new degree programs, enhancing college infrastructure, implementing student success initiatives and strengthening research capacity. However, Dr. Dong thought the most rewarding leadership experience was to work with faculty and staff to develop an inclusive and supportive community.
At Cal State L.A., Dr. Dong established an advising council that fostered a collaborative relationship between professional and faculty advisers and created Teaching and Learning Academy, a community of practice for faculty members to share teaching practices, hear from students about what techniques help them learn best and generally receive more support for the instruction side of their jobs.
“After people get a Ph.D. degree, they are already well-established researchers, but they might have very little experience in teaching,” she explained. “In this community, they talk to and learn from each other, they share their own ideas, questions, concerns and they become reflective teachers. It helps the students too because their voices are heard.”
Though Dr. Dong clearly came to enjoy her experience as associate dean, she remembers being shocked by the prospect when the dean of the school offered her the job, initially on an interim basis. Dr. Dong didn’t know if she wanted to be an administrator. After 12 years at the university, she still enjoyed working as a professor and researcher, and she found time in the classroom with students to be as much of a learning experience for her as for them.
“When I thought about it, I realized it was a great opportunity for me to better support the students,” Dr. Dong said of the transition from faculty to administration. “The way the dean convinced me was, she said to take it as an adventure – just try it to see if I like it or not. I like adventure so that’s why I took the challenge.”
The spirit of adventure took Dr. Dong to a different career path. Her seven-year service as an associate dean allowed her to develop an in-depth understanding of roles and responsibilities of an academic leader in a public institution. And her inner drive to make a broader impact has led her to CSUB.
“I was attracted to NSME because of its vibrant community,” she explained. “The diverse talents in this school offer endless opportunities for innovation. I would like to establish a healthy ecosystem, where we respect everybody’s experiences, we value the assets that every community member brings to the space and we build a system upon everyone’s strength and creating a structure that helps everybody to thrive, so they can feel fulfilled while they are working here.”
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