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University of Florida

UF's first dean of arts college, Joseph Sabatella, passes away


Joseph "Joe" J. Sabatella, founding dean of the College of the Arts at the University of Florida, passed away Sept. 8, 2025. 
 
“During his tenure as dean from 1975 to 1990, Dean Sabatella oversaw remarkable growth and transformation of the College of Fine Arts through our formative years as an independent college at the University of Florida. His visionary leadership established the foundation upon which COTA stands today, and his impact can be seen across campus,” said College of the Arts interim dean Jennifer Setlow.  
 
Sabatella first came to the university in 1959 to teach drawing and design in the Department of Architecture. In 1966, he was appointed to the role of assistant dean of the College of Architecture and Fine Arts, and in 1974, he was named acting dean. 
 
In 1975, the university divided the college into two separate entities: the College of Architecture and the College of Fine Arts. Sabatella was appointed by President Robert Marston as the inaugural dean of the newly created College of Fine Arts, which would in 2014 be renamed College of the Arts. 
 
At the time of his appointment as dean, Sabatella led the nascent college with the support of just two full-time staff members. He welcomed a growing wave of art students, including many Vietnam War veterans, into a department that was severely under-resourced, with classrooms still housed in converted World War II wooden army barracks. 
 
When the college celebrated its 20th anniversary in 1995, Sabatella recalled that during COTA's early years as an independent college at UF, “the main obstacle was visibility and being recognized as an integral part of the university ... My intent as dean was always to make decisions that support the faculty and their creative activities while attempting to facilitate their teaching responsibilities.” 
 
During his fifteen-year tenure as dean, Sabatella led the College of Fine Arts through a remarkable roster of achievements, establishing resources and earning the recognition that cornerstone the College of the Arts’ excellence today. Among his many accomplishments:  

  • Establishing the Department of Theatre by moving the theatre program out of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences Department of Speech and into the newly formed College of Fine Arts in 1975. 
  • Leading the construction of a new art studio facility (Fine Arts Building D), completed in 1979. 
  • Securing approval for several new degree programs. 
  • Overseeing the renovation of the University Auditorium, including the addition of a new lobby and Friends of Music Room. 
  • Guiding the restoration of the Andrew Anderson Memorial Pipe Organ. 
  • Initiating plans and helping secure funding to establish the Harn Museum of Art. 
  • Helping bring 49 carillon bells, funded by UF Student Government, to Century Tower.

Sabatella’s influence extended beyond the University of Florida and Gainesville. He served on the Fine Arts Commission of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges, the Executive Board of Directors of the International Council of Fine Arts Deans and the Executive Committee of the Florida Higher Education Arts Network. 

In addition to his administrative legacy, Sabatella was an accomplished artist. His work appeared in national and regional exhibitions, and many pieces remain in private collections in the United States and England. His illustrations were published in several books, and he is listed in Men of Achievement, Personalities of the South, Who’s Who in American Art and Who’s Who in America. 

After stepping back from his role as dean in 1990, Sabatella returned to the classroom, continuing his passion for teaching until his retirement in 1996. 
 
Professor and Dean Emeritus, Donald McGlothlin, who joined UF as Department of Music chair in 1972 and later succeeded Sabatella as College of Fine Arts’ second dean (1990-2005), recalled Sabatella’s legacy: 
 
“Joe Sabatella was a true gentleman, a dedicated artist-teacher and an effective and visionary administrator. He provided distinguished leadership for the initial development of UF’s arts programs," he said. "We are all standing on his shoulders.”