Thomas Nowak

Thomas Nowak, Vice President for Academic Affairs/Academic Dean at Dominican College in Rockland County, NY, has served in multiple roles during his 28 years at the institution. He remains a member of the English faculty (Associate Professor rank) and was Department Chair from August 1995 through December 2005. In January 2006, he began serving as Director of the Arts & Sciences Division. In Fall 2007, he was asked to serve for a semester as interim Academic Dean and was asked to take this on as a permanent position the following semester, Spring 2008. In addition to these administrative roles, Thom was the Director of the College’s Honors Program from 1994 through 2001, served three separate year-long stints as the Director of the College’s Writing Center, and chaired several faculty committees (Academic Standards, Faculty Affairs, and Rank & Tenure). Thom also served as a writer for two Middle States (MSCHE) accreditation reports and co-chaired three others. As Academic Dean, he has worked on reaccreditation self-study reports and site visits for seven separate professional programs, primarily in health fields.

Thom received his Ph.D. in English Language & Literature from the State University of New York at Stony Brook (fields of concentration: Renaissance and 17th-Century Literature, Medieval Literature, Composition, and Rhetorical Theory). His dissertation was on “The English Gunpowder Plot Sermons, 1605 -1651.” At SUNY at Stony Brook, he held a full Teaching Fellowship for four years and taught various levels of composition courses under the mentorship of Peter Elbow and tutored in the University’s Writing Center. During this period, he also adjunct taught at Hofstra University and SUNY College at Old Westbury. Thom did his undergraduate work at the State University of New York at Binghamton where he earned his B.A. in Rhetoric and Literature and a Minor Certificate in Medieval Studies.

Thom currently lives with his wife, children Ruth and Max, and multiple pets (three cats, two fish tanks, and one snake) in Orange County, New York.