Adele Lindenmeyr, the dean who shaped Villanova University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS) for a decade, will retire in June 2028.

Villanova President Rev. Peter M. Donohue announced Lindenmeyr's departure on Thursday, Sept. 17, in an email to the university community, The Villanovan reported. Lindenmeyr has served as the William and Julia Moulden Dean of CLAS since 2014. She will take a sabbatical during the 2027-28 academic year and be named dean emeritus.

No successor has been named.

Lindenmeyr joined Villanova's Department of History in 1987 as a faculty member. She rose to chair of the department, then served as Dean of Graduate Arts and Sciences before taking the top CLAS post. Before Villanova, she taught at Carnegie Mellon University. She holds a bachelor's degree in Russian Language and Literature, magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania and a doctorate in History from Princeton University.

She is also the author of Poverty Is Not A Vice: Charity, Society, and the State in Imperial Russia (Princeton University Press, 1996), which won the Heldt Prize for Best Book Published by a Woman in Slavic Studies.

During her time as dean, Lindenmeyr oversaw the launch of six new centers: the Center for Irish Studies, the Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest, the Center for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Stewardship, the Center for Political Theology, the Center for Inclusive Education and the Villanova One Sky Center for Astrophysics. She also supported the creation of a doctoral program in Theology, a master's program in Environmental Science and new undergraduate majors and minors.

In his statement, Donohue said Lindenmeyr's relationships with alumni brought significant philanthropic support to the college. He also credited her with creating the Center for Inclusive Education, which helps students access study-abroad programs, faculty-mentored research and internships regardless of financial circumstance.

The retirement announcement, made Sept. 17, follows Donohue's Sept. 8 Opening Address, in which he told the university community that Villanova would temporarily slow hiring and establish a review committee to examine staffing needs. He also hinted at an early retirement plan for employees.

Villanova has not announced a timeline for selecting Lindenmeyr's successor.