U Of I Names New Chancellor

URBANA, Ill., Aug. 4 (UPI) — Phyllis M. Wise, who has held leadership roles at major public research universities, has been named chancellor of the University of Illinois’ Urbana campus.

Wise, now provost and executive vice president at the University of Washington, is to take on the new role Oct. 1, pending approval by the U of I Board Trustees, the university said in a release.

She also is to serve as a university vice president.

Wise, who served as interim president at the University of Washington in the 2010-11 academic year, also had been dean of the College of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Davis, from 2002 to 2005 and chairman of the Department of Physiology at the University of Kentucky, Lexington, from 1993 to 2002.

U of I President Michael J. Hogan praised Wise’s leadership and scientific achievements, including membership in the National Academy of Science’s Institute of Medicine, and noted she is a fellow in the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

“Dr. Wise has the full package, ” Hogan said. “She is a proven scholar with a deep commitment to public higher education and has an exceptional reputation as a leader at some of the nation’s top universities.”

Wise has a bachelor’s degree from Swarthmore College and a doctorate from the University of Michigan.

“The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign is one of the most respected institutions of higher education in the world,” she said. “I look forward to working with the faculty, staff and students and the university’s many external stakeholders and partners to build on its strengths and create new opportunities for the university to have an even greater impact.”