Norma Burgess
Dean

Dr. Norma Burgess is the founding dean of the College of Arts and Sciences. Burgess previously worked at Chatham University, Pittsburgh, where she was founding dean of the College of Graduate Studies. In that role, she was responsible for every aspect of graduate education, including new program development, faculty evaluation, budgetary management, academic management, and faculty and support services.

From 1993-2007 at Syracuse University, Burgess earned the rank of full professor and chair of the Department of Child and Family Studies and was academic co-chair of the Bachelor of Professional Studies program. She has also served as a visiting professor for the University of the Aegean in Rhodes, Greece, and as a member of the summer faculty at Cornell University. Dr. Burgess is a widely published scholar with a focus on work and family and leadership development.

Burgess has served as chair of the women’s caucus of the American Association of Higher Education and is currently a board member at-large of the National Council on Family Relations. She is co-author of African American Women: An Ecological Perspective and numerous articles and other writings on work and family life, leadership, faculty development and workplace diversity.

Burgess holds a doctorate in sociology and a master’s degree in public affairs from North Carolina State University as well as a bachelor of arts degree in political science from the University of Tennessee. She is a native of Stanton, Tenn.