University Provost Warren Vander Hill cited three major reasons for Kvam's appointment. The first two are his performance as interim dean and the strong support Kvam received from his colleagues.

"I'm obviously very pleased to have been chosen for this post, and I am humbled by the support I received from those here at Ball State and in the greater Muncie community," Kvam said.

Kvam's excellent working relationship with Muncie's arts community was the other major factor in the decision, Vander Hill said.

"Those relationships are crucial as Bob carries Ball State's arts mission to Delaware County and beyond," Vander Hill said.

"I am very proud of the fact that we have worked closely with institutions such as Minnetrista Cultural Center, Muncie Center for the Arts and the Muncie Symphony," Kvam said.

"I will continue to encourage collaborations that benefit Ball State, Delaware County and the surrounding region, and at the same time, I'll be seeking out projects that will boost Ball State's presence on the national and international stage," he said.

A university committee identified three other finalists for the position during a national search. They were: Benjamin Christy, dean of Visual and Performing Arts, Indiana University-Purdue University at Fort Wayne; Thomas Clark, associate dean, University of North Texas College of Music; and Jeffrey Elwell, chair, Department of Theatre Arts, University of Nebraska at Lincoln, and executive director of the Nebraska Repertory Theatre.

"We applied rigorous standards to all four candidates on our short list," said search committee chair Paul Mitchell, who also chairs Ball State's urban planning department. "They are all people of considerable achievement with strong backgrounds and remarkable reputations within their own areas of the arts.

"I was impressed with the quality of the people and the programs in the College of Fine Arts. It has a strong base, but to continue to progress the dean will have to be a strong leader of external and internal constituencies. Bob certainly has won the support of both," Mitchell said.

Kvam earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Iowa in 1969, a master's from the University of Wisconsin at Madison in 1974 and a doctorate from the College-Conservatory of Music, University of Cincinnati, in 1979.

He served three years as director of Ball State's School of Music, is the artistic director of Masterworks Chorale in Muncie and has served on the National Commission on Accreditation for the National Association of Schools of Music for the past six years.

Kvam pointed to a mid-April groundbreaking for the new Music Instruction Building, the late April dedication of Shafer Tower and the fall grand reopening of the Ball State Museum of Art, highlighted by a Rodin exhibit, as exciting milestones in the coming months.

"The quality of our faculty and our students has risen significantly over the last several years, and all indications are we will continue to attract outstanding people," Kvam said.

"Providing faculty, students and staff with the facilities, resources and time they need to teach, perform, research and learn will be instrumental in continuing that trend."

(NOTE FOR EDITORS: For more information on this story, contact Robert Kvam at (765) 285-5495 or rkvam@bsu.edu.)