Two interim deans named

Two University of Maine faculty members have been named interim deans on campus for the coming fiscal year. Mario Teisl will serve as interim dean for the College of Natural Sciences, Forestry, and Agriculture, and Stephanie Welcomer will serve as interim dean for the Honors College.

Teisl is a professor in the School of Economics. He obtained an M.S. in agricultural and resource economics from UMaine and a Ph.D. in agricultural and resource economics from the University of Maryland. Teisl worked for three years in fisheries and agricultural extension in Papua New Guinea (Peace Corps), and for two years in the Consumer Studies Branch of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. He served as the director of the School of Policy and International Affairs, and director of the School of Economics at UMaine. His research focuses on valuing environmental and health improvements and how health and environmental information affect values and behavior. 

Welcomer, a professor of management, earned a Ph.D. at Pennsylvania State University. Her research has focused on the intersection of sustainable businesses, communities and environments, with recent articles on climate change and farming, farmers’ adaptation strategies for energy resources and pro-environmental behavior. Welcomer is a founding member of the Honors College Sustainable Food Systems Research Collaborative and has conducted research with a number of Honors students. Her teaching areas include strategic management and organizational behavior. She piloted an alternative capstone experience this spring with students working with the Maine Cheese Guild assisting farmers in the state. She served as associate dean of the Maine Business School from 2010–16. Welcomer also has regularly taught courses internationally, including classes in Germany, France, Nicaragua and Vietnam.