School of Education Names Interim Dean

Posted on May 9, 2024

Jill Hamm, the William C. Friday Distinguished Professor of Education, has been appointed interim dean of the UNC School of Education.

Hamm, who will begin serving as interim dean May 15, replaces Fouad Abd-El-Khalick, whose tenure ends June 30 and who has been named provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. (See “Education Dean Named Provost at UMass,” May/June 2024 Review.)

“Fouad has invested tremendously in the UNC School of Education and its people over the past eight years, and he is leaving us with positive momentum to continue to grow,” Hamm said in a statement. “While we have accomplished many great things under his leadership, we are not done. We will continue our upward trajectory, and I am honored to lead the School in that growth.”

Hamm, associate dean for research and faculty development, has been a faculty member in applied developmental science since 1999 and was named the inaugural associate dean for research and faculty development in 2017. As associate dean, Hamm oversaw growth of the school’s annual research expenditures from $6.2 million in 2016 to $22.2 million in 2023, according to the school.

Hamm’s research focuses on early adolescents’ social, behavioral and academic adjustment, with an emphasis on peer relations in successful school adaptation. She has authored or co-authored more than 50 peer-reviewed papers and has served as principal investigator or co-principal investigator on funded research totaling more than $18 million. Hamm currently co-leads a $1.5 million collaborative research grant — funded by the National Science Foundation — with Horizon Research Inc., a Chapel Hill-based company that improves STEM education through research.

Hamm is a past associate editor of the Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology and previously directed the Social Development Intervention Research Program at the Center for Developmental Science at UNC. She holds a doctorate and master of science degree in educational psychology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Hamm will be replaced by Jeffrey A. Greene, McMichael Distinguished Professor, who has been a member of the faculty since 2007 and specializes in leveraging the science of learning to improve critical thinking in online and technology-driven environments.