Beginning in July, three of Penn State's top administrative positions will be refined into two new areas designed to improve the relationship between the Commonwealth Campuses.

John Romano, current vice provost and dean for enrollment management, will assume the newly created position of vice president of Commonwealth Campuses.

Romano said his duties will be to oversee the Commonwealth Campuses and help to improve the relationship between them.

"One of my goals is to improve the portability of credits across campuses and ensure clear passage for the thousands of prospective students looking to enter Penn State each year," he said.

Romano added that he is excited about assuming the new role, but said he is nervous about his increased responsibilities.

"All I have agreed to do is work as effectively as I can with all campuses and at University Park," he said.

Diane Disney, current chancellor of the Commonwealth College, will assume a new position as chancellor of Penn State Great Valley, a school focused on graduate and professional studies.

Disney said her duties will cover a broad scope of administrative responsibilities and will range from fund-raising to program design.

To become familiar with the Great Valley campus, which is located outside Philadelphia in Chester County, Disney said she is planning to visit the campus Monday and Tuesday to meet with students, faculty members and administrators.

"I will be sitting in on classes as well as holding town hall meetings with students and faculty members in an effort to become acquainted with them before my term begins on July 1," she said.

Janis Jacobs, current vice provost for undergraduate education and international programs, will take on the position of vice president for undergraduate education.

Jacobs said the two positions are closely related, but she will have to take on the additional duties of enrollment management, including admissions and student aid.

"It is going to be lot for me to handle and learn at first," she said. "But the areas are closely related, and I'm excited to have more of an insider's view of how the enrollment management process works."

Rodney Erickson, executive vice president and provost, said the areas of enrollment management and undergraduate education were previously headed by one person, but were split in 1993 because of concerns about dropping high school graduation rates.

"We split the position in order to take an aggressive approach to improving admission rates and classroom performance," he said. "We have made great strides since the mid-1990s, and we realized that we could put the jobs together again."

Erickson said Romano, Disney and Jacobs were given the opportunity to decline the new roles.

"They certainly could have refused the new duties, but all three seemed excited about taking on the new responsibilities," he said.

Because all three accepted the new roles, Erickson said no one else was considered for the positions.

He added that if someone had declined, the university would have looked to other people to fill the titles.

Penn State spokesman Bill Mahon said the reorganization will help the university operate more efficiently and save money.

"The realignment of positions will help to cutback on some of the bureaucracy that currently exists in our administration," he said. "Some money will also be saved, but we cannot be sure of how much until the process is complete and the new positions take effect."

The proposed changes will be submitted to the Penn State Board of Trustees for approval on May 13.