The University of Nebraska–Lincoln will host a farewell open house for Shari R. Veil, dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications, from 4 to 6 p.m. Dec. 11 in the Don and Lorena Meier Television Studio on the second floor of Andersen Hall. Remarks will begin at 5 p.m. The event is free and open to the campus community. Refreshments will be served.
Veil has served as the Jane T. Olson Endowed Dean of the College of Journalism and Mass Communications since 2020. During her tenure, she led the college through a period of significant growth, reversing enrollment declines, expanding experiential learning, increasing external funding and strengthening faculty governance and research productivity. She has provided strategic, programmatic, financial and operational leadership that has advanced the college’s mission within the university and across the state.
In January, she will begin the next chapter of her career as provost at North Dakota State University. This appointment marks a meaningful homecoming as she returns to the institution where she completed her doctoral degree and began her academic journey.
In addition to her role as dean, Veil is a tenured professor and research fellow with the National Strategic Research Institute, a Department of Defense-designated University Affiliated Research Center. Her research in risk and crisis communication has been supported by the National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Homeland Security. She has contributed her expertise to working groups for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration and collaborates with federal agencies, private foundations and military organizations on national security and public safety challenges.
Before joining Nebraska,Veil served in academic leadership roles at the University of Kentucky, including associate dean for undergraduate affairs, department chair and director of the Risk Sciences Division. She previously directed the Center for Risk and Crisis Management at the University of Oklahoma.
A North Dakota native, Veil earned a Bachelor of Science in communication and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Mary in Bismarck and a doctorate in communication from North Dakota State University.
