UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Ann (“Nan”) Crouter, who has served as Penn State’s Raymond E. and Erin Stuart Schultz Dean of the College of Health and Human Development since 2007, has announced her retirement, effective June 30, 2018.
Throughout her more than 36-year career at the University as a teacher, researcher and administrator, Crouter has made significant contributions in the field of health, human development, and family studies, and helped to advance Penn State’s impact on some of society's most pressing health issues. During her tenure, she has served as dean of the College of Health and Human Development for more than 10 years, and as the director for the Center for Work and Family Research, Social Science Research Institute and Consortium for Children, Youth and Families.
“For more than three decades, Nan Crouter’s work in family studies and health and human development have made her a renowned thought leader at Penn State and beyond,” said Nick Jones, executive vice president and provost. “The University is extraordinarily grateful to Nan for her hard work and commitment to excellence.”
As dean, Crouter has led the college’s eight academic units and five interdisciplinary research centers dedicated to educating the next generation of professionals in the field and finding solutions to health issues such as improving physical and psychosocial health in aging populations, preventing risky behavior in children and youth, and addressing health disparities and vulnerable populations. She has also overseen educational programs ranked among the nation's best and spearheaded the renovation and construction of the new Health and Human Development Building and Biobehavioral Health Building on the University Park campus.
“I am deeply grateful for having been a part of such an extraordinary academic community for over three decades,” Crouter said. “I am very proud of the progress we have made together — the great faculty and staff who have joined the college on my watch, our new buildings and renovated spaces, the strides we have made in the classroom and World Campus, and the exciting research projects and innovative collaborations that unfold each year, increasing Penn State's impact on the world.”
Crouter came to Penn State from her graduate program at Cornell University to become an assistant professor of human development in 1981. She was promoted to associate professor in 1987 and professor of human development in 1993. Her research examines the interconnections between work and family life and their implications for psychological development and family relationships across various populations and points in the lifespan. She has participated in a variety of interdisciplinary research initiatives, including the Penn State Family Relationships Project and the Work, Family and Health Network. Her work has been funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation and the National Institute for Child Health and Human Development, among others, and she has written and edited numerous books and publications.
She has been awarded with Penn State’s Faculty Scholar Medal for Excellence in the Social and Behavioral Sciences, the Evan G. and Helen G. Pattishall Outstanding Research Achievement Award from the College of Health and Human Development, and the President’s Award for Excellence in Academic Integration.
Crouter is chair of the 2017 Penn State United Way Campaign and is co-chairing the strategic planning implementation executive committee in the area of “Enhancing Health.” She also chaired the University’s most recent search and screening committees for Penn State’s president in 2013 and the vice president for Development and Alumni Relations in 2016. For 19 years she served on the board of directors for ChildFund International, an international nongovernmental organization.
Crouter earned a bachelor’s degree in both psychology and English at Stanford University and a doctorate in human development and family studies from Cornell University.
A national search to find a successor for Crouter will begin immediately.