With the appointment of a new dean at its helm, administrators and faculty are hopeful that the freshly integrated computer, mathematical and natural sciences college will soon see departments collaborating on interdisciplinary research like never before.
On May 19, university officials announced the appointment of Jayanth Banavar — who has headed the physics department at Penn State University for the past 12 years — to succeed former CMNS Dean Steve Halperin beginning August 15.
Before the October integration of the former computer, mathematical and physical sciences college with the chemical and life sciences college, some university officials expressed concern about whether a single dean could oversee more than 300 faculty members from 10 departments, but officials said Banavar has the experience to accomplish this.
“[Banavar] has quite a broad range of interests and knowledge about topics that are going to be relevant to the college,” said biology department chair Gerald Wilkinson, who was part of one of the groups that reviewed Banavar. “I have a lot of optimism that he will have the ability to see ways that different units that have no history working together can work together in the future.”
One of Banavar’s jobs will be to make sure the integration of the two colleges, which faculty members said has occurred without a hitch, continues to run smoothly.
“A dean is really, from the standpoint of the departments, the support unit of the college,” mathematics professor Peter Wolfe said. “We like to think of a dean as someone who helps us do as good a job as we can.”
Banavar — who was recognized for significantly raising the Penn State physics department’s National Council of Research rankings and conducting collaborative research between physics and the life sciences — said he does not want to limit interdisciplinary research to just faculty.
“My main goal is to make the college as excellent as it can be and put students first in all that we do and get them involved in research,” he said. “We are faced with grand challenges that really need a new generation of thinkers who have an understanding of many disciplines. The goal is strength in the core disciplines and building upon that to tackle key interdisciplinary topics that are scientifically and globally relevant right now.”
While Banavar has never worked at this campus, he said he is no stranger to the university where several of his family members have attended or worked, and where he’s given seminars.
Before Banavar sets his goals, he said he will meet with the science faculty he’s long admired.
“The first thing I will do is educate myself,” Banavar said. “Concrete plans come through partnership, so first I will engage in conversations with the people in the college, friends of the college and people in the university.”
Halperin — who will return to the math department faculty — said in a university press release that he is confident in Banavar’s leadership ability. Halperin could not be reached for comment because he was out of town.
“The college is extremely fortunate to have an individual of the quality and stature of Dr. Banavar as its next dean,” Halperin said in the press release. “I look forward to my new role as a professor of mathematics at Maryland, knowing that the college is in such very fine hands.”
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