Phyllis Wise, dean of the Division of Biological Sciences at UC Davis since 2002, will join the University of Washington on Aug. 1 as its provost.

"I accept the position with a mixture of anticipation and sadness," Wise said after the announcement Monday. "The past three and one half years have been so very rewarding as we have accomplished so much. It has been a distinct honor to preside over this period of the division's history," Wise said. "But I am also cognizant that many important projects are still in progress. I truly hope that the momentum that we have built will not abate."

Said Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef: "Within the span of just three and a half years, Phyllis has done an outstanding job of advancing the Division of Biological Sciences. She has brought to UC Davis a combination of strengths as an adept leader and one of the nation's leading neuroscientists."

"I had the pleasure of recently hearing Phyllis give a rousing, motivating talk at my wife Rosalie's spring women's luncheon, a talk infused with both her scientific expertise and her passion for the potential for success of women in academia," Vanderhoef said. "Phyllis' (new) appointment further establishes her as a role model and is fitting recognition of her talents as an academic leader."

Accomplishments during Wise's tenure have included near completion of the division's reconstitution as the College of Biological Sciences, a move that the dean notes "is merely the beginning of a much longer, much more demanding path to building recognition and public stature worthy of such a name."

Other milestones have included hiring more than 25 new faculty members, obtaining the regents' commitment for a new neuroscience building, constructing and opening the Genome and Biomedical Sciences Facility and the Sciences Laboratory Building, and establishing permanent campus funding commitments for the Center for Population Biology and the Center for Neuroscience.

While serving as dean, Wise also maintained an active research program as a professor of neurobiology, physiology and behavior in the division, and professor of physiology and membrane biology in the School of Medicine. Her research interests include studying the connections between the brain and the aging process, and the role of the hormone estrogen after injury and during aging.

At UW, Wise will serve as the chief academic officer and chief budget officer of the university, overseeing the deans and graduate and undergraduate education, among other responsibilities. She will oversee the university's annual budget of nearly $3 billion. Wise will also oversee the Office of Research at UW, one of the nation's leading public institutions in sponsored research with more than $1 billion in ongoing work.

Wise will maintain a small research interest at the UW by bringing a $19 million National Institutes of Health grant — looking at how estrogen protects the brain — and two postdoctorate fellows with her. Four other grants she is responsible for will stay at UC Davis.

"My position as provost will allow me to partner with President Mark Emmert to lead new academic and research initiatives that build on UW's strength," Wise said. "I am particularly excited to craft collaborations in the area of improving global health and ensuring a sustainable environment because these are opportunities to bring together members of the UW community that have not traditionally worked together extensively."

Leadership meetings slated

Chancellor Vanderhoef and Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor Virginia Hinshaw will meet shortly with the section chairs, center directors, and associate deans within the division to discuss future leadership. A national search for Wise's successor will be launched in the 2005-06 academic year.