By Kaylee Alivo and Naomi Martinez

The Department of Health, Sport, and Human Physiology (HSHP) in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences recently formalized a new leadership role to strengthen one of the department’s core priorities: excellence in teaching and student learning. Kathy Mellen, professor of instruction and longtime University of Iowa educator, serves as HSHP’s first associate department executive officer (DEO), supporting faculty development, instructional quality, and departmental continuity. Deeply connected to HSHP’s teaching mission, Mellen focuses on creating structures that help both faculty and students succeed while balancing her associate DEO responsibilities with her faculty role.

The associate DEO role carries a wide range of responsibilities; all centered on instructional excellence and faculty support and mentoring. Mellen chairs the Instructional Track Faculty Review Committee, which oversees annual faculty evaluations, classroom observations, and reviews of course materials. She also provides feedback on pedagogical strategies and helps develop approaches for assessing teaching effectiveness across the department.

The role also emphasizes mentorship and professional growth. Mellen works closely with HSHP Professor and DEO, Gary Pierce, to support junior instructional track and tenure-track faculty by helping establish teaching mentoring committees, monitoring mentoring best practices, and identifying internal funding opportunities for course development and revision. “When we support faculty needs, it enhances student and program success,” she said.

Mellen’s major initiatives this past fall included developing lab course supervisor expectations: guidelines that provide clarity and consistency across HSHP’s many lab-based courses. “These help provide faculty with expectations and guidance,” she explained, while also emphasizing student learning outcomes and graduate teaching assistant mentorship.

In the spring semester, she will chair the Teaching Review Committee, which ensures a standardized process for classroom observations that contribute to annual faculty reviews.

Her partnership with Pierce is also central to the position’s success. “We meet each week to discuss ongoing projects” Mellen said, adding that they also take time to reflect on each semester and plan. She credits Pierce’s vision for creating the role, noting that HSHP’s size (2600+ students) and large number of instructional track faculty (34 FTE) made the position a natural next step for the department.

“Professor Mellen provides me with unique insight into instructional track faculty challenges or concerns that I may not have as a tenured faculty member,” Pierce said. “She also assists me in annual faculty evaluations, course planning, and faculty teaching assignments.”

Mellen’s path to the associate DEO role reflects her long-standing commitment to the university and teaching. She brings more than 15 years of experience as instructional track faculty, along with service on campus-wide committees such as the CLAS Instructional Track Faculty Policy Committee and the CLAS Executive Committee. “My time at Iowa actually precedes the Department of HSHP,” she said, adding that her institutional knowledge and campus collaborations have been critical preparation for academic leadership.

At the heart of her work is a focus on mentorship—both for faculty and students. “I enjoy the mentorship relationships with students the most,” Mellen said. “I’m fortunate to teach many students more than once during their academic careers, and to see their growth as students and future health professionals is rewarding.” She added that this shared commitment to student success is what she values most about her colleagues in HSHP.

Serving as an associate DEO has also been a learning experience. “It’s been a learning curve, and that’s been rewarding,” Mellen said. “I always describe myself as a lifelong learner, and this opportunity is allowing me to learn more about academic leadership.” What motivates her most, she said, is supporting others. “I want faculty and students to feel comfortable sharing successes and problems, along with potential solutions. I’m motivated by seeing others succeed and supporting that success.”

As HSHP continues to grow, the associate DEO role plays a key part in sustaining the department’s instructional excellence and collaborative culture. By investing in faculty development, mentorship, and teaching innovation, the role helps ensure that HSHP students receive a rigorous, supportive education—one that prepares them for meaningful careers in health, sport, and human physiology, while creating a base for lifelong connections to the department.