June 11, 2008
TO THE CAMPUS COMMUNITY
Dear Colleagues:
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Pierre Wiltzius as our next dean for the Division of Mathematical, Life, and Physical Sciences in our College of Letters and Science. In this position Dr. Wiltzius will also hold the Susan and Bruce Worster Chair for the Dean of Science. His tentative start date will be October 1, pending approval by President Dynes and The Regents. We are delighted that Dr. Wiltzius will be joining the faculty in our Department of Physics as well.
This appointment is the result of an extensive national search and recruitment process. I would like to thank Professors Jim Allen and Diane Mackie, co-chairs of our search advisory committee, and all of our committee members for their outstanding work. The members of the committee are listed on the reverse side of this memo. I would also like to especially thank EVC Gene Lucas for his leadership role in this search process, as well as our Academic Senate colleagues and all the members of our campus community who provided valuable input.
Dr. Wiltzius is currently the director of the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, where he also holds faculty appointments in the Department of Physics and the Department of Materials Science and Engineering. Prior to joining the Beckman Institute in 2001, he was at Bell Laboratories from 1984 to 2001. His last position there was as director of semiconductor physics research. He holds a Ph.D. in physics from E.T.H. Zurich, and spent two years here at UC Santa Barbara as a postdoctoral research fellow in physics, from 1982 to 1984.
In addition to receiving widespread praise for his leadership of the Beckman Institute, Dr. Wiltzius is a highly regarded researcher and pioneer in the areas of soft-condensed matter, colloidal self-assembly, photonic crystals, and microphotonics. He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and a Senior Member of the IEEE. In 2001 he received an R&D100 Innovation Award from R&D Magazine for printed plastic display circuits.
In response to our invitation to Dr. Wiltzius to join UC Santa Barbara, he said, “It is a tremendous honor to have been selected as the next dean of mathematical, life, and physical sciences. I am looking forward to working with Chancellor Henry Yang, the senior leadership team, and the faculty, students, and alumni of the campus. I will build on the outstanding scholarly achievements and the exemplary strengths in interdisciplinary research across campus. I am particularly grateful to Susan and Bruce Worster for their generous support of UC Santa Barbara and the endowed chair of science.”
When informed of his acceptance, the Worsters said, “We would like to add our warm welcome to Dr. Wiltzius and say that we are delighted that such a distinguished scholar and accomplished individual will be the next dean.”
UC Santa Barbara has become known around the world for our pre-eminence in the mathematical, life, and physical sciences. We look forward to the inspiration and leadership that Dr. Wiltzius will bring to our MLPS Division. I hope you will join me in extending a warm welcome to him and his wife, Ann.
I would also like to take this opportunity to express our campus’s appreciation to Professor Steven Gaines for his continuing service as our acting dean. We are deeply grateful for his dedication and leadership during this interim period.
Sincerely,
Henry T. Yang
Chancellor
Search Advisory Committee for the Dean of Mathematical, Life, and Physical Sciences
S. James Allen, Co-Chair; Professor, Physics
Diane Mackie, Co-Chair; Professor, Psychology
Ralph Archuleta, Professor, Earth Science
Lars Bildsten, Professor, Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics
Hector Ceniceros, Professor, Mathematics
Carla D’Antonio, Schuyler Professor, Environmental Studies
Leslie Edgerton, MSO, Earth Science
Raisa Feldman, Associate Professor and Chair, Statistics & Applied Probability
Catherine Gautier-Downes, Professor, Geography
Jeanette Hagan, Vice President, Graduate Students Association
Song-I Han, Assistant Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry
Ken Kosik, Professor, Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology; Co-Director and Harriman Chair in Neuroscience Research, Neuroscience Research Institute
Sally MacIntyre, Professor, Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology
Melvin Oliver, Dean, Social Sciences; Professor, Sociology
Zekee Silos, External Vice-President, Local Affairs, Associated Students
Matthew Tirrell, Dean, College of Engineering; Richard A. Auhll Professor
Consultant to the Committee:
Ricardo Alcaíno, Director, Office of Equal Opportunity
Melanie Hoven, Office of Academic Personnel
Kathryn Upton, Office of Academic Personnel