Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Mary Croughan has appointed
Cynthia Carter Ching to serve as interim dean for the School of
Education, effective July 1, 2023. Ching will lead the school
until the new dean begins.
“While the search is taking longer than we had hoped, we are
steadfast in our commitment to find the right leader for our
outstanding School of Education,” Croughan said. “I am very
grateful to Cynthia for stepping into this vital leadership
position. Her depth of experience and passion for education will
keep the school moving in the right direction.”
Ching, associate dean for academic programs in the School of
Education since 2016, joined UC Davis in 2007. She also served as
interim vice provost and dean of Undergraduate Education from
2020 to 2022. An interim associate dean will be appointed in
August to fulfill Ching’s current duties.
Ching holds two University of California degrees: a Bachelor of
Arts in psychology (with an emphasis in cognitive science) from
UC Irvine and a Ph.D. in education (Department of Psychological
Studies in Education) from UCLA. She began her faculty career at
the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, as an assistant
professor in the Department of Educational Psychology, College of
Education, spending six years in that role before coming to UC
Davis.
Ching’s research is in the area of educational technology. She
examines the intersection of technology, learning, collaboration,
and identity, investigating how children, youth, and adults
represent and negotiate aspects of themselves via technology in
classrooms, in online environments, and in games.
“The School of Education has greatly benefited from Dr. Ching’s
steady leadership as associate dean, her research expertise in
issues relating to the use of technology in learning, her deep
commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion, and her unfailing
advocacy for students,” said Lindstrom. “I know she will serve
the school very well in this time of transition.”