Jan 18, 2009 7:54 am US/Central
New Chancellor Named At UIC
CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ―
Paula Allen-Meares, former dean of social work at the University of Michigan, has officially become the sixth chancellor of the University of Illinois at Chicago.
"I am very excited and enthusiastic about the opportunity to lead this great institution," Allen-Meares said Thursday at the University of Illinois Board of Trustees' meeting at UIC. Citing UIC's "intellectual breadth, the strength of the academic units and full complement of health sciences colleges," Allen-Meares said, "My objective is for UIC to become the nation's premier urban public research university."
Allen-Meares took over from interim chancellor Eric Gislason, who served since the retirement of former chancellor Sylvia Manning in December 2007.
When Allen-Meares was introduced last summer, Lawrence Eppley, the board's chairman at that time, called her a "proven success" who has "exactly the right stuff that an ascendant UIC requires in a chancellor."
She had been selected from a field of more than 100 candidates.
"We were looking for someone who could communicate with the city and state, speak for the institution, and be a leader," said Elliot Kaufman, chair of the 20-member chancellor search advisory committee and professor of biochemistry and molecular genetics. "She clearly sends the message that she's a doer; that she'll get things done."
Allen-Meares said Thursday that her immediate priorities include moving forward on UIC's strategic plan and fundraising to ensure both academic excellence and financial support for students to pursue their educations.
As dean of social work at Michigan since 1993, she led the school to consistent rankings as No. 1 in the nation, improving its research profile with externally funded interdisciplinary research awards totaling more than $100 million. The school established interdisciplinary degree programs with law and public policy and set up partnerships with other agencies, institutes and communities.
Under her leadership, the social work school at Michigan increased its endowment from $1 million to $42.3 million; she raised $34 million in private and public funds between 1995 and 1998.
Allen-Meares' research focuses on school social work, adolescents and their families, and social work education. Her books include "Social Work Services in Schools," now in its fifth edition, with Korean, Japanese and Chinese versions.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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