Dr. Kelly Norris Martin was appointed Dean of the College of Liberal Arts in December, 2024 after serving as Interim Director for over 1.5 years. Martin holds a Ph.D. in Communication, Rhetoric and Digital Media (2011) from North Carolina State University (NCSU), a M.S. in Communication (NCSU, 2007) and a B.A. in English and Music from John Carroll University (2002). Prior to her Dean roles, Dr. Martin served in several roles within the College of Liberal Arts, including Associate Dean for Faculty and Staff Affairs, Director of School of Communication, and co-founder of the Expressive Communication Center. Martin studies workforce education and the value of a liberal arts foundation for entry level and senior level employees. Previous research areas include discipline-based communication education and visual communication research methods. She was recently a principal investigator (PI) on a Teagle Foundation and National Endowment for the Humanities Cornerstone grant and has a served as PI and Co-PI for Engineering Information Foundation and National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded projects examining the skills that help U.S. college students succeed and increase employer competitiveness. She also served as a mentor for an NSF Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program for eight years. Martin currently serves as editor of the Graphic Design Archives Chapbook Series with RIT Press and she has published work in leading journals in her field including Communication Education, American Educational Research Journal, Visual Communication Quarterly, Physical Review Physics Education Research, and Design Issues.