Published March 17, 2015 This content is archived.
Dear University Community:
It is our great pleasure to announce the appointment of Professor of Epidemiology and Environmental Health, Jean Wactawski-Wende as Dean of the School of Public Health and Health Professions, effective immediately. Dr. Wactawski-Wende has served as Interim Dean since July 2014.
Dr. Wactawski-Wende’s appointment results from an extensive national search that yielded a highly competitive pool. Dr. Wactawski-Wende brings to her new role impressive scholarly accomplishments, significant administrative experience and a vision for the school including how to advance its mission of improving health. We are confident that with her strong and forward-thinking leadership, she will succeed in facilitating broad collaboration across campus and in the community that sustains and builds the impact of the School of Public Health and Health Professions and our university.
A renowned scholar and UB faculty member since 1989, Dr. Wactawski-Wende is a member of the American Epidemiological Society and one of UB’s leading researchers, serving as principal investigator on dozens of studies with foci on cancer, osteoporosis and periodontal disease in postmenopausal women, and reproductive health issues in younger women. Dr. Wactawski-Wende is the principal investigator of UB’s Women’s Health Initiative (WHI) Center, leader of the WHI Northeast Regional Center, and national chair of the WHI Steering Committee. WHI is one of the largest clinical studies ever undertaken in the United States and was launched by the National Institutes of Health in 1993 to address common causes of disease and death in postmenopausal women. Dr. Wactawski-Wende has authored over 250 peer-reviewed articles.
Prior to her appointment as Interim Dean, Dr. Wactawski-Wende served from 2009-2014 as UB’s Vice Provost for Strategic Initiatives and Research Advancement, significantly advancing the university’s research agenda.
We extend our sincere thanks to Dean Nancy Smyth and all of the members of the search committee for their outstanding service, which was critical to the successful outcome of this search. For more details on this appointment, please view the full announcement here.
Please join me in congratulating Dr. Wactawski-Wende and welcoming her to this significant leadership role within our campus community.
Sincerely,
Charles F. Zukoski
Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs
Michael E. Cain, M.D.
Vice President for Health Sciences and Dean of the School of Medicine and Biomedical Sciences
