Douglas Epperson, one of three finalists for the position of dean of the College of Liberal Arts, will return to WSU on Thursday for a second visit.

He first visited the campus Oct. 29 and 30.

The university has not yet announced the dates of second visits for the other finalists.

The two other finalists are Steven Lynn from the University of South California and Angel Kwolek-Folland from the University of Florida.

During the upcoming visit, Epperson will meet with college leaders, talk to staff and meet with Provost Warwick Bayly, said Paul Whitney, interim dean of the college.

Epperson is an associate dean and professor in psychology in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at Iowa State University. He also was the interim director of the Office of Precollegiate Programs for Talented and Gifted at ISU, which is ranked first nationally.

The search committee is looking for a candidate who understands the role of teaching and research within the department, said Christopher Bruce, director of the Museum of Art and member of the dean search committee. Bruce said Epperson has valuable first-hand experience from his time as an associate dean.

“Epperson is a good candidate because he can share priorities, and he is in a system at Iowa State that is similar to WSU’s,” Bruce said. “The committee is searching for someone who understands the role of teaching and research.” Dan Bernardo, search committee chairman and dean of the College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences, hopes to discover more about the candidate during the visit.

“He will meet with Provost Bayly and hopefully get to know the staff at WSU better,” Bernardo said.

Epperson went to school at Ohio State University, where he received his doctoral degree in psychology. At the University of Utah, he earned his master’s degree in educational psychology with a specialization in rehabilitation counseling.

During his research at Iowa State, he focused on issues related to the risk assessment for sex offenders to reoffend. He is the lead author of the Minnesota Sex Offender Screening Tool - Revised and also researches women in science and engineering.

“Epperson is very familiar with the mission and research we have here at WSU,” Whitney said.

The position of dean of the College of Liberal Arts became available when Erich Lear decided to return to the faculty last spring. Whitney has served as interim dean since August.