Dean of Admissions Susan Donovan will retire from Syracuse University Aug. 31, the university announced Tuesday.

Donovan was out of her office Tuesday and could not be reached by phone or e-mail to comment on why she decided to retire.

In the five months before Donovan officially retires, Eric Spina, vice president and provost, and Donald Saleh, vice president of enrollment management, will work to create a search committee and begin a national search for the new dean, Spina said.

Saleh said the next dean will need to be creative, imaginative and a strong leader and have a solid understanding of the school and a will to get the message out about SU to prospective students and alumni.

“We need someone who is going to see the challenges two or three years down the road,” Saleh said. “The next dean will have to be comfortable walking across traditional organizational boundaries.”

Donovan has worked at SU, her alma mater, for 35 years — as director of admissions in 1986, then as associate dean of admissions and financial aid in 1992, and as dean of admissions in 1999, according to an SU news release from Tuesday.

“It’s unusual to have someone who can dedicate 35 years of service to any institution, but Susan has dedicated it to her alma mater,” Saleh said.

Applications have increased by more than 70 percent during Donovan’s tenure due to her raising awareness of the university across the country and internationally, Saleh said. Saleh said Donovan is driven by her love for SU, from which she received an undergraduate and a graduate degree.

“It’s certainly going to be very challenging to fill her shoes,” Spina said. “She really has been a terrific colleague.”

“We need someone who is going to see the challenges two or three years down the road,” Saleh said. “The next dean will have to be comfortable walking across traditional organizational boundaries.”

Published on March 23, 2010 at 12:00 pm