Dean of the Heller School for Social Policy and Management Lisa Lynch has been reappointed to serve in her position for another five years, according to University President Frederick Lawrence in an email to the Brandeis community yesterday.

"I was delighted that the provost and the president decided to ask me to consider staying on for another five years at Brandeis," said Lynch in an interview with the Justice. "It's been a wonderful experience to have been dean of the Heller school for the past five years. The features that drew me to the Heller school in the first place remain in place."

According to Lawrence's email, the reappointment process involved input from several Heller school members, including research staff, faculty members from the Heller School and other schools of the University, administrators, the Board of Overseers and "external reviewers."

"[Provost Steve Goldstein] had a lot of different touch points with respect to how folks had viewed my leadership," said Lynch about the process.

"Dean Lynch earned glowing recommendations from all of these constituencies," wrote Lawrence. "Her achievements as Heller School dean have helped strengthen Brandeis as a whole and have raised the profile of the school in the academic, policy and public arena."

Lynch, who is also a Maurice B. Hexter Professor of Social and Economic Policy, has served as dean since July 2008. She served as the chief economist at the U.S. Department of Labor from 1995 to 1997 and has been a faculty member at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Tufts University, Ohio State University and the University of Bristol.

Lynch said that when she began working at the Heller School, the country and University faced "challenging financial times," but that the research being completed at the University may help make an impact in government policy.

"You might think, 'Oh my goodness. Why would someone sign on for another five years as the country still seems to be facing those challenging times?' which certainly is hard for a school of social policy," said Lynch. "But I can't think of a better place to be during this period of crisis for our country as a whole."

-Sara Dejene and Sam Mintz