Adam David Roth

Dean Roth is a dynamic leader, team builder, and dedicated advocate for the liberal arts in action. He is passionate about how the skills cultivated through a liberal arts education—critical thinking, effective communication, problem-solving, and ethical reasoning—are essential for career readiness and lifelong success. Roth's leadership has consistently emphasized the practical application of liberal arts principles, preparing students to navigate complex professional landscapes and contribute meaningfully to society.

Under his leadership of the College of Arts & Sciences, the strategic plan implemented to advance the liberal arts has yielded remarkable results. From 2023 to 2024, deposits into humanities majors increased by 57%, and from 2022 to 2024, they rose by 78%, while overall enrollment in the College also increased by 10.8%. These outcomes underscore Roth's ability to translate a commitment to the liberal arts into tangible achievements, reinvigorating interest in the humanities and affirming their relevance in today's world.

Since his appointment as Dean in 2021, Roth has driven forward a vision of excellence and innovation. He has secured over $3 million in philanthropic support, funding initiatives that include cutting-edge curricula, state-of-the-art facilities, scholarships, and efforts promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion, experiential learning, and study abroad. Over his career, Roth has raised over $20 million, leveraging partnerships with corporate sponsors, foundations, and private donors.

Roth's administrative experience includes leadership roles that emphasize interdisciplinary collaboration and strategic growth. From 2007 to 2021, he served at the University of Rhode Island in roles such as director of the Harrington School of Communication and Media, associate dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, and communication course director for general education. From 2006–07, he served as director of the Communication Across the Curriculum program at the University of Pittsburgh.

In addition to his administrative work, Roth is an acclaimed scholar and educator whose research expertise spans rhetorical theory and criticism, persuasion and society, communication studies, and the rhetoric of science. He has delivered presentations on the role of rhetoric in the evolution of Western medicine across the U.S. and internationally in countries including Greece, Cyprus, Russia, and China. His research has been published in multiple languages—English, Russian, and Greek—and in academic journals such as Journal of Philosophy and History of Education, Intercultural Communication Studies, Basic Course Communication Annual, Akropolis: Journal of Hellenic Studies, and China Media Research. He also co-edited The Philosophy of Aristotle: The Proceedings of the World Congress of Philosophy 2016, vol. I, and served as guest editor of a special issue of Journal of Intercultural Communication Studies. Roth is the lead author of the 10th edition of Thinking Through Communication: An Introduction to the Study of Human Communication.

Roth's excellence as an educator has been recognized through prestigious honors, including the Douglas Ehninger Award for Teaching, the University of Iowa Outstanding Teaching Award, the Rabbi Benjamin Marcus Award for Most Supportive Faculty, and the Harrington School of Communication and Media Founding Scholar Award.

Roth's academic credentials reflect his interdisciplinary focus and commitment to lifelong learning. He holds a bachelor's degree in communication and business from the University of Pittsburgh, master's and doctoral degrees in communication studies and a graduate certificate in interdisciplinary inquiry from the University of Iowa, and an MBA from Quinnipiac University. He completed Harvard University's Management Development Program and will be in the 2025–2026 cohort of the AGB Institute for Leadership and Governance in Higher Education.