Jennifer R. Bowen

Jennifer Bowen, Professor of Mathematics, is serving as the Dean for Curriculum & Academic Engagement and Dean for Advising, Planning & Experiential Learning

As Dean for Curriculum & Academic Engagement and Dean for Advising, Planning & Experiential Learning (APEX), she provides strategic leadership for the College’s academic programs and student success initiatives, ensuring that students are supported throughout their intellectual, personal, and professional development. The position bridges curricular innovation and academic excellence with advising, and experiential learning, creating a seamless educational experience that enables students to thrive both in and beyond the classroom.

The Dean oversees the integrity and continuous improvement of the academic curriculum, working closely with faculty, academic departments, and governance committees to develop innovative courses, interdisciplinary programs, and educational policies that support student learning. Responsibilities include supporting faculty curriculum development, advancing assessment of student learning outcomes, coordinating the summer registration program (ARCH) and first-year academic initiatives, overseeing the Writing Center, and promoting opportunities that foster academic engagement and achievement. The Dean also chairs the Committee on Academic Standards, helps students navigate academic challenges, and collaborates across campus to uphold academic integrity and support student success.

In addition, the Dean leads Advising, Planning & Experiential Learning, the College’s integrated student success division, which includes Academic Advising, the Academic Resource Center, the Registrar’s Office, Experiential Learning, and Global Engagement. Through these interconnected programs, the Dean guides strategic planning, assessment, budget management, and organizational development while ensuring that students receive comprehensive support in pursuing their academic, experiential, and professional goals.

As a member of the College leadership team, the Dean serves as an advocate for academic engagement and student success, bringing an academic and co-curricular perspective to institutional decision-making and fostering collaboration among faculty, staff, and administrative offices. The Dean works closely with academic departments, faculty advisors, and campus/community partners to create initiatives that enhance student learning, expand access and opportunity, and strengthen connections between the curriculum and experiential learning.

The Dean also serves as the primary spokesperson for APEX and related academic engagement initiatives. Through strategic leadership, effective communication, and a commitment to inclusive excellence, the Dean fosters an environment in which every student is supported, challenged, and empowered to achieve academic, personal, and professional goals.

• The First Spacewalk: An Exploration of Mathematical and Cultural Implications of the Space Race (Aidan Brown Math and Russian Studies, 2018)
• The Earth-Moon Problem: A Study in Topological Graph Theory (Robert Gates, 2017)
• Skilled Emigration, Return, and Human Capital Formation: A Game Theoretic Approach (Ruben Aguero Quinteros, Math and Economics, 2017)
• Clear Communication: Construction and Implementation of Error-Correcting Codes (Alex Iudice, Math and Computer Science, 2017)
• The Rubik’s Cube: A Look into Group Theory (Tori McCoy, 2017)
• A Comparative Analysis of Photon and Electron Wave Functions in Spherically Symmetric Potentials (Micheal Bush, Math and Physics, 2016)
• Dirichlet Tesselations (Nakesha Newsome, 2016)
• Set Theory Building: Numbers from Nothing (Philip Sizek, 2015)
• An Examination of the Golden Ratio in Nature and Music (Marjorie Etheridge, 2015)
• The Scope of Fractals: Geometry, Iteration, and Application (Sebastian Weber, 2015)
• The Truth about Lie Symmetries (Ruth Steinhour, 2013)
• Quaternions and Octonions (Erin Davison, 2013)
• Extensions of the Farey Sequence and Ford Circles (Allie Webb, 2013)
• Iteration Digraphs (Hannah Roberts, 2012)
• Similarly Intriguing and Perspectively Odd: Fractal and Projective Geometry Explored in MC Escher’s Art (Adam Trontz, 2012)
• Tighten Up: A Preliminary Study of Knots (Louisa Catalano, Math and Physics, 2011)
• Analyzing Insurgency SItuations with an Emphasis on the Effect of Intelligence: An Adaptation of the Lanchester Model (John Mullet, 2010)
• Investigation of Dioxybenzone-Alcohol Complexes through Spectral Deconvolution and an Analysis of Symmetric Groups and Character Tables (Rachel Lipner, Math and BCMB, 2009)
• Topics in Multivariate Statistical Theory (Robert Ashmead, 2009)
• The 6,670,903,752,021,072,936,960 Reasons Why Sudoku is a Puzzle Worth Solving (Bethany Smith-Polderman, 2008)