Enjoy the August 2017 issue of Provost Perspective

AUGUST 2017

PROVOST PERSPECTIVE

Bill Gates visits with Dr. Stephen Jones, Director of The Bread Lab
 

GATES VISITS WSU BREAD LAB IN MOUNT VERNON

Bill Gates paid a visit to the Bread Lab in Mount Vernon and the co-founder of Microsoft was impressed by the quality, variety, and ingenuity of the WSU program.

The Bread Lab produces a wide variety of delicious baked goods, and conducts research on thousands of lines of wheat, barley, buckwheat, and other small grains. The mission is to breed and develop publicly available varieties of grains and other crops that benefit farmers, processors, and consumers while enhancing access to affordable and nutritious food.

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ANDREFSKY STEPS DOWN, GLOSS NAMED INTERIM GRADUATE SCHOOL DEAN

Dr. Lisa Gloss assumed the role of Interim Dean of the Graduate School on August 1, stepping in for Dr. Bill Andrefsky, who returned to his faculty position in the Department of Anthropology. Colleagues gathered August 7 to wish Andrefsky well and thank him for more than four years of service as Dean. Gloss has served as Associate Dean of the Graduate School since 2014, and has been a WSU faculty member for nearly 20 years.

CHAIRS AND DIRECTORS TRAINING WORKSHOPS

The Office of the Provost is pleased to offer a Department Chairs and Directors Training Workshops series throughout the year. The series is open to all faculty and staff, and the sessions are designed to foster open discussion about the administrative processes at WSU. The next workshop, “University Overview: Managing and Advancing Faculty,” is set for September 5 from 9 to 10:30 a.m. in Lighty 405. AMS will also be provided.

SERIES LAUNCHING FOR NEW FACULTY

The New Faculty Workshop Series will kick off September 6 at noon in the Global Scholars Hall Amphitheater. Mary Jo Gonzales, Vice President for Student Affairs, will address student success resources at WSU. The series continues with events through December, all designed to help new faculty learn more about WSU and situations they may face as faculty members. Please RSVP by emailing your name, title, department, and which session(s) you plan to attend to provosts.office@wsu.edu.

View the full schedule (PDF).

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COLLEGE HIGHLIGHTS

Stephanie Hampton is taking on a leadership role for the National Science Foundation (NSF) after she was named chair of the biological sciences advisory committee. Hampton is the director of WSU’s Center for Environmental Research Education and Outreach, and leads regional efforts to collaborate across northwest universities to find solutions to food-water-energy nexus challenges. A member of the NSF advisory committee since 2016, Hampton will lead in providing recommendations to the NSF concerning support for research, education, and human resources in the biological sciences.

Four WSU faculty members will be inducted into the Washington State Academy of Sciences at a ceremony next month. Amit Bandyopadhyay, Herman and Brita Lindholm endowed chair and professor in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering; Susmita Bose, Herman and Brita Lindholm endowed chair and professor in the School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering; Douglas Call, professor of Molecular Epidemiology; and Jonathan Yoder, professor in the School of Economic Sciences and director of the State of Washington Water Research Center, were accepted in recognition of their outstanding records of scientific achievement and willingness to work on behalf of the academy in bringing the best available science to bear on issues within the state.

In recognition for her service to the nuclear/inorganic and computational chemistry communities and for her innovative research, WSU professor Aurora Clark has been named a Fellow of the American Chemical Society. Clark was recognized during the ACS’s 254th National Meeting and Exposition in Washington, D.C. She is the eighth WSU faculty member, and third female faculty member to receive the recognition.

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