CSHL President Bruce Stillman today issued a statement praising the new and outgoing deans of the Watson School of Biological Sciences
Cold Spring Harbor, NY — Bruce Stillman, Ph.D., president of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory (CSHL), today made the following announcement:
It is my pleasure to announce a major change in the Watson School of Biological Sciences. After completing her term of five years as Dean of the Watson School, Leemor Joshua-Tor, Ph.D., will step down as Dean on July 31, 2012. She will remain a Professor at Cold Spring Harbor and Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and will pursue her research. As the third Dean of the Watson School, Leemor has advanced the education of graduate students at Cold Spring Harbor in many significant ways. Courses have been added in quantitative biology, physical biology and imaging. Her outstanding leadership has ensured that the School remains at the leading edge of all institutions by providing a comprehensive Ph.D. program that is typically completed in a relatively short period of time. Leemor has helped other institutions emulate the Watson School concept of graduate education and has been a leader in providing advice on the future of graduate studies throughout the U.S. She is a member of the prestigious national committee that was constituted by the Director of the National Institutes of Health that just released its findings and recommendations on the U.S. biomedical research workforce. Throughout these five years, Leemor has also maintained her laboratory’s research at the highest level. Please join me in thanking Leemor for her exemplary service to the students in the Watson School and for her contributions to graduate education in general.
I am most pleased to announce that Professor Alex Gann, Ph.D., will be appointed Lita Annenberg Hazen Dean of the Watson School of Biological Sciences starting January 1, 2013. Alex is Editorial Director at the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press, where he is involved in producing books ranging from textbooks for undergraduate and graduate education, to laboratory manuals and books on the history of science. He is an author on the textbook Molecular Biology Of The Gene, among others, and will maintain a part-time connection with the CSHL Press when he becomes Dean. Alex has also been very involved in teaching in the Watson School and will therefore be an ideal leader of the School, strengthening the programs that were set up by the three previous leaders. I thank Alex for taking on this important position in the education programs at CSHL.
In the period between August 1 and the end of 2012, senior members of the Watson School Executive Committee, as well as the very talented staff in the School, will ensure that the School moves forward with the new entering class, with the Fall curriculum and the recruitment of new students for 2013.
The Watson School has rapidly, within its short period of tenure, been a model for others to admire and emulate. It has become a core component of Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory’s research and education mission and I ask that everyone join me in thanking and congratulating Leemor and Alex for their contributions to the Laboratory.
Bruce Stillman
President
Written by: Communications Department | publicaffairs@cshl.edu | 516-367-8455