Stony Brook University will announce today that Dr. Dennis Assanis, a distinguished engineering professor at the University of Michigan has been appointed as the next provost of the university.
The appointment comes one month after Eric Kaler, the previous provost, stepped down to accept the position of President at the University of Minnesota. Assanis will officially assume the role on October 1.
“I am honored and thrilled to join President Sam Stanley and his exceptional team to pursue the vision of making Stony Brook one of the leading public Universities in the US and the world,” said Dr. Assanis in a statement.
The appointment of Dr. Assanis leaves two administrators with heavy backgrounds in the hard sciences at the helm of the university. President Samuel Stanley came to Stony Brook University in 2009 as a highly regarded medical researcher.
The search committee tasked with finding the next provost convened several times during the Spring 2011 semester to gather input from professors and students on what they are looking for in a new provost. Professor Michael Zweig offered the most succinct description at the time: “We would hope any candidate would be like Eric Kaler.”
Zweig may get his wish. Like Assanis, Kaler came to Stony Brook University with a background in engineering.
“Out of a superb pool of candidates, Dr. Assanis rose to the top, thanks to his energy and vision. He will help Dr. Stanley take Stony Brook to the next level,” said History Professor Nancy Tomes, the co-chair of the search committee, in a statement.
In addition to his professorship at Michigan, Assanis also serves as the director of the Michigan Memorial Phoenix Energy Institute, a university-affiliated program that works with alternative energy. He is also the founding director of the US-China Clean Energy Research Center’s Clean Vehicles initiative.
Adam Peck
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One can only hope that unlike Provost Kaler, Dr. Assanis will be more forthcoming with whom he tells what to.
For instance:
April 19, 2010- at the Arts and Science senate meeting Provost Eric Kaler’s report stated that “The planning process for expansion for beginning operations in Korea Songdo will come to an end. ”
http://www.stonybrook.edu/senatecas/minutes2010April19.shtml
December 6, 2010- at the University Senate meeting Provost Kaler’s report stated that Songdo did not come to an end, but the plans were still in the works “Songdo: limited Master’s programs being developed.”
http://www.stonybrook.edu/univsenate/minutes2010Dec06.shtml
As Details Emerge About South Korea Campus, Who Knew What and When- (THiNK)
http://thinksb.com/2011/07/as-details-emerge-about-south-korea-campus-so-do-questions-of-who-knew-what-and-when/
Do we have another mouthpiece for President Stanley who will once again close the door on transparency?
With the departure of Eric Kaler will the Stony Brook Administration be more credible, or was he a puppet for President Stanley and we can expect more of the same in the future?
Pinocchio has left the building, who do we have now?!
All administrators are mouthpieces of the official University policy, and act as politicians, talking with forked tongues. Like a politician, they will promise without being precise, they will withold information, and plan for their next administrative advancement stepping on the back of hard-working academics. Expecting anything better is unrealistically optimistic.