Welcome President Assanis
Dennis Assanis, provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Stony Brook University, named president of UD
OUR UD | Soon after Dennis Assanis was announced as UD’s next president on November 18, the praise followed.
“Insightful. Inspirational. Inclusive and approachable,” his colleagues from across the country said after the news broke of his unanimous election by the University’s Board of Trustees. “Extraordinary research, teaching and leadership skills,” said another. “The perfect choice,” one declared.
The veteran teacher, scholar and administrator will step into his new role as president on July 1, and already Assanis has made it clear he will keep keen focus on some ongoing UD initiatives: more technology in the classroom and enhanced partnerships with industry; a growing emphasis on interdisciplinary and experiential learning methods; and a continued push to make UD a place where innovation and research translate into real-world products and help drive Delaware’s economic growth.
He’s also vowing to take on issues that have proven to be perennial challenges for UD and universities around the nation: making college more affordable, fostering new revenue sources and creating a campus that is welcoming to a more diverse array of students.
The Board of Trustees hailed Assanis as a natural choice for pushing ahead the tech-driven, research-university priorities set in part by President Emeritus Patrick Harker and sustained by Acting President Nancy Targett. Already, the Greek-born scholar has vowed to make campus diversity his “No. 1 priority” and moved to make his mark as a president who is accessible, open-minded and engaged with students, faculty and the broader community.
It all seems well within reach to those who worked over the years with Assanis, who comes to UD after five years as provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at Stony Brook University in New York, and 17 years as a top engineering professor at the University of Michigan, where he pushed the leading edge in clean-energy alternatives for the automotive industry.
“He has the integrity and temperament needed to inspire and bring people together across disciplines and backgrounds,” said Linda Katehi, chancellor at the University of California-Davis, who previously worked with Assanis at Michigan.
Trustees Terri Kelly and Don Puglisi, who helped review the credentials of 50 candidates as co-chairs of the Presidential Search Committee, said the ultimate choice was clear. “Dennis Assanis’ combination of administrative experience and outstanding academic credentials clearly set him apart,” Kelly said. “Dr. Assanis is deeply concerned with the issues facing higher education today, including affordability, diversity and the future of research innovation,” Puglisi added.
Have a question for the president? We want to hear from you. Email your question to TheMessenger@udel.edu with the subject “Question for the President” for consideration in the next issue of the magazine, which will feature an in-depth Q&A with President Assanis.
