I would like to thank Prof. Chuck Thorpe for his success as Dean of Arts and Sciences and for all he did to build our research and academic reputation. Prof. Thorpe has decided to resign his position as Dean and refocus his energies and passion on his research in robotics. We all look forward to his return to the classroom and lab after his sabbatical this Spring.
In light of Prof. Thorpe’s resignation, I am pleased to announce that Tom Langen has been appointed to serve as the Interim Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences effective January 12, 2020. Prof. Langen takes on this important leadership role as we launch a national search for a permanent Dean this Spring semester.
Professor Langen received his BS from Purdue University and PhD from UC San Diego where he also completed a postdoctoral fellowship. He has been a faculty member at Clarkson University since 1999 and has served as Chair of Biology for two consecutive terms. Tom enjoys tackling complex interdisciplinary problems advancing our understanding of human-natural system interactions. His research focuses environmental management, including wetland restoration, road ecology, and endangered species conservation. He has served a consultant to NGOs, state and federal agencies on environmental management issues and conducts workshops on road ecology and management for agencies and academic institutions in the US, Canada, and Latin America. He currently serves on the editorial boards of high impact journals including Nature (Scientific Reports) and the Journal of Environmental Management. He has published over 90 peer-reviewed manuscripts and has received over $1M in National Science Foundation funding as well as significant research funding from a breadth of state and federal sources. Highly regarded as one of the best teachers and advisors at Clarkson University, Tom’s leadership in teaching has led to broad adoption of best practices in problem-based learning and inquiry approaches to improve teaching in ecology and conservation biology, the use of publically-available ‘big data’ including citizen science data for undergraduate teaching and research, and how to design undergraduate summer research internship programs to best achieve program objectives. He has served as a Director or Co-Director of several Research Experience for Undergraduates, Undergraduate Bio-Math, and Organization for Tropical Science Programs, and has been involved in K-12 STEM professional development.
Please join me in welcoming Tom to his new role at the university.
Robyn Hannigan
Provost
Clarkson University
302 Science Center
CU Box 5505
8 Clarkson Avenue
Potsdam, NY 13699
315.268.6544 (C. Smith Assistant to the Provost)
315.268.4430 (Direct)
