Robert Mutchnick, Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice, received the emeritus professor status in May 2020. Emeritus status is an honor bestowed by the university to show respect for a distinguished career, which "Rob" has displayed.
Mutchnick joined the department faculty in 1982 and retired after 37 years. He served as chair of the department two different times for a total of almost 10 years. As chair, he was responsible for centralizing undergraduate student advising by establishing the department Advising Center, which served in its heyday over 1,000 undergraduate student each semester. He also helped author and shepherded the department's doctoral program through the required steps at both the university and system levels. He and Paul McCauley were the originators of the journal Criminal Justice Policy Review, of which he served as editor for a number of years.
At the university level, Mutchnick served on the University Senate, the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee, the University-Wide Tenure Committee, and the University-Wide Promotions Committee.
In addition to his service to the department, he was also very active in the faculty union, having served as chapter president for four years and as a member of Meet and Discuss for 12 years. At the state level, Mutchnick served as a member of executive council for two years and was also a member of the team representing APSCUF in contract negotiations.
He has very fond memories of IUP, and wishes everyone well during these difficult times.