Anderson, who joined Ƶ in 1998 as the head of the Office of University Relations, will transition into a new role as special assistant to the president and will focus on communications related to the Boldly Ƶ strategic plan and other special assignments.
After more than two decades leading Ƶ’s communications efforts, Vice President Dan Anderson will transition into a new role as special assistant to the president on Aug. 1. In the role, Anderson will continue to be a member of the president’s senior staff and will focus on communications related to the Boldly Ƶ strategic plan, pandemic-related issues and other special assignments.
A search committee headed by Vice President for Strategic Initiatives Jeff Stein and Professor of Strategic Communications Barbara Gaither will be formed this fall to conduct a national search to fill the position of vice president for communications and marketing.
“Dan Anderson has been an instrumental leader in sharing the story of Ƶ through its growth and transition to a top national university during the past two decades,” President Connie Ledoux Book said. “His tireless service to Ƶ has introduced the university to so many new students and families while amplifying the achievements of students, faculty and staff. We’re thankful for his strategic guidance during both triumphs and crises through the years.”
Anderson joined Ƶ in 1998 as head of the Office of University Relations. His early work included communications efforts for the inauguration of President Leo M. Lambert, the transition from Ƶ College to Ƶ, and the adoption of a new university athletics identity, the Phoenix. He was named assistant vice president in 2004 and vice president for university communications in 2011.
As vice president of university communications, Anderson has led a staff of 18 professionals in the Office of University Communications that handles the university’s print and digital communications, media relations, news production and distribution, promotion, advertising and marketing.
Anderson has played an important role in Ƶ’s emergence as a top-100 national university, managing outreach to national media and college rankings surveys that have consistently rated Ƶ among the nation’s top universities. He has written, developed and carried out communications plans for three 10-year university strategic plans and fundraising campaigns, overseen the development and redesign of Ƶ’s website on multiple occasions and generated significant local and national media coverage of the university.
“One of the most dynamic spaces in our world over the last three decades has been in communication,” Book said. “Dan has navigated these changes for Ƶ and kept our values and sense of community at the center.”
Anderson has guided communications surrounding the continued expansion of Ƶ’s academic programs, including the creation of the Ƶ School of Law and School of Health Sciences. More recently, Anderson played a key role in the university’s communications during the COVID-19 pandemic and the university’s Ready & Resilient plan that allowed for a return to campus for students, faculty and staff during the 2020-21 academic year.
Assistant Vice President for Publications Keren Rivas will serve as interim vice president for communications and marketing.