The UF College of Agricultural and Life Sciences announced earlier this week that Teresa Balser will serve as its new dean.
The college launched a nationwide search and narrowed its search to four candidates before deciding on Balser, said Jack Payne, UF's senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources.
Balser, who previously served at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, is the first woman dean of the college, he said.
Payne said he selected Balser because she possessed a passion for innovation in education, which fell in line with his vision.
"You know how they used to say, ‘If it ain't broke, don't fix it?'" he said. "Well, in my mind, if it ain't broke, let's make it better."
In an interview Wednesday, Balser said her goal is to make education less of a one-size-fits-all experience.
"I want students to learn things the way that we naturally learn new things," she said. "It's not normal to sit in a classroom and memorize a giant textbook. It's not how people learn things in the real world."
She said she wants to have students identify their career goals early on and find something that works for them. She suggested having students take smaller seminar courses early on or try learning in the field and focus on why students are learning the material. However, she's leaving it open for debate.
"I don't have all the ideas," she said. "I have some, but [I want to say] to students, ‘What do you think will work for you?'"
Balser will officially begin her work July 1 but won't arrive to campus until later because she is currently looking for a house in the area.
