R. Sam Larson recently became assistant dean for operations and finance in the College of Education.
She brings 20 years of experience synthesizing evidence and implementing innovations in complex organizations. She also has experience at Michigan State University, having received her doctorate in the Higher, Adult and Lifelong Education (HALE) program. Most recently, Larson was director of planning in the Office of Planning and Budgets at MSU.
Larson’s appointment became effective June 1, 2014. She takes over for Gail Nutter, who retires this year after nearly 50 years of service to the university.
Previously, Larson was director of knowledge management and implementation support at Kaiser Permanente Colorado, where she oversaw strategic planning, analytics, project management, budgeting, evaluation and regulatory support within an integrated health care system. Larson also was director of Diffusion Associates, a consulting group of researchers and practitioners with expertise in diffusion, social networks, organizational communication, research and practice translation, and evaluation. Clients include the W. K. Kellogg Foundation, the Centers for Disease Control and the National Science Foundation.
Larson’s experience in higher education also includes academic appointments at Ohio University, University of Denver, University of Oregon and Champlain College (VT). Her research interests include organizational communication and learning, implementation science, strategic planning and organizational development. She has authored numerous journal articles, book chapters and conference papers.