Yale College Dean Dies Unexpectedly

The dean of Yale University’s Calhoun College died unexpectedly this morning, according to university officials.

Officials said Dean Leslie Woodard died of natural causes.

Prior to her position at Yale, Woodard served as the Director of Undergraduate Creative Writing at Columbia University, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Literature and Writing. She worked with a faculty of 32 professors to teach 1,000 students each year, according to the Calhoun College website.

Woodard was a prolific writer whose articles and short stories were published in an array of magazines. She published a short story collection entitled “The Silver Crescent” in 2006 and was working on a novel when she died.

Woodard received her Master’s degree in Creative Writing at New York University and previously worked as a writing teacher.

She started work as the dean of Calhoun College in 2007.

Calhoun College was established in 1933 and houses 400 students, according to the college website. The college includes art studios, music practice rooms, a dance studio and a cabaret theater.

“The dean is the residential college's chief academic adviser, to whom students submit course schedules and schedule changes,” the Calhoun College website reads. “He or she also talks with instructors or directors of undergraduate studies on a student's behalf in case of academic difficulty. Aside from dealing with academic advising and forms, the dean also advises the students on personal matters.”

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