By: Sabrina Miller, Content Strategy Director
BALTIMORE, Md. — Notre Dame of Maryland University has appointed a seasoned administrator with a wealth of experience in higher education leadership, academic strategy, and faculty development as the new dean of the School of Arts, Sciences, and Business. Dr. Sabrina DeTurk will assume the role of dean effective June 8, 2026. Dr. DeTurk will lead a school with nearly 40 bachelor’s and master’s degree programs, taught by expert faculty who are active professionals. The school’s academic offerings span the natural sciences, social sciences, business disciplines, and the fine arts and humanities, with a core focus on career preparation, ethical leadership, and social responsibility.
“We are thrilled to welcome Dr. DeTurk to Notre Dame of Maryland University,” said Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs, Dr. Martha Walker. “Her record of academic leadership, strategic vision, and commitment to faculty and student success will strengthen the School of Arts, Sciences, and Business and advance the University’s mission.”
Before joining Notre Dame, she most recently served as director of faculty development and strategic initiatives at the University of Maine, the state’s flagship R1 research university. She also served as a lecturer in the Honors College, teaching interdisciplinary courses examining contemporary issues at the intersection of art, society, and culture.
Dr. DeTurk previously held senior leadership positions at Zayed University in the United Arab Emirates, where she served as assistant dean for research and outreach in the College of Arts and Creative Enterprises. In this role, she established comprehensive faculty development programs and increased faculty engagement in research and creative activity. She also served as assistant dean of students, leading student success initiatives, improving academic processes, and supporting student retention.
Earlier in her career, Dr. DeTurk served as associate dean and executive director of graduate arts and sciences at Saint Joseph’s University. She developed and implemented strategic plans that expanded enrollment across more than 20 graduate programs, launched six new online degree programs enrolling more than 1,200 students, and implemented data-informed enrollment strategies to support sustainable program growth.
Additionally, Dr. DeTurk is an accomplished scholar; her research focuses on art as social commentary and cultural intersections between the Middle East and the West. She is the author of Street Art in the Middle East (2019) and Women and Contemporary Art in the Gulf (2023). Her forthcoming book, Women in Early Modern Venetian Art: Fluid Identities (2026), examines
representations of women in Renaissance Venice. She has also published numerous scholarly articles and serves as co-editor of the Routledge book series “Cultural Heritage, Art and Museums in the Middle East.”
Dr. DeTurk earned a Bachelor of Arts from Wellesley College and a Master of Arts and Ph.D. from Bryn Mawr College. Her leadership development includes advanced training through the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, the HERS Leadership Institute, and the Ignatian Colleagues Program.
Established in 1895, Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU) is a private, Catholic institution in Baltimore, Maryland, with the mission to educate leaders to transform the world. Notre Dame has been named one of the best "Regional Universities North" by U.S. News & World Report.
NDMU offers Maryland's first bachelor's and master's degree programs in art therapy which prepares people to become licensed art therapists. The Art Therapy Department hosts Art Hives, a community
