Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs C. Cybele Raver has appointed a committee to conduct a national search for the next dean of the School of Medicine Basic Sciences. The committee includes faculty members, Vanderbilt University Medical Center leadership, a dean, an alumna and a current student. John Geer, Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean of the College of Arts and Science and professor of political science, will serve as the committee chair.
“Dean Lawrence Marnett’s groundbreaking leadership over the past five years embodies Vanderbilt’s high standards of academic rigor, commitment to trans-institutional projects and reputation for fostering diversity, equity and inclusion wherein all students feel that they belong here and can thrive,” Raver said. “Dean Marnett has built an incredibly strong foundation, and as he prepares to step down, this committee is charged with appointing a new leader who can take the reins and lead us boldly forward.”
“Larry Marnett’s vision and skill have led the School of Medicine Basic Sciences to extraordinary heights,” Geer said. “The search committee will seek out the very best candidates who can build on the school’s many strengths while bringing innovative ideas that will propel it to even greater prominence. I look forward to working with this talented group of colleagues to find the next leader of Basic Sciences.”
Marnett has led the School of Medicine Basic Sciences since its creation in 2016 and spearheaded its dramatic ascension as one of the nation’s top biomedical research and doctoral programs. He will step down as dean effective June 30, 2022.
Members of the search committee are:
- John Geer (chair), Ginny and Conner Searcy Dean, College of Arts and Science; professor of political science
- Nancy Carrasco, Joe C. Davis Chair in Biomedical Science; chair and professor, Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics
- John Gore, University Professor of Radiology and Radiological Sciences; professor of biomedical engineering, molecular physiology and biophysics and physics and astronomy; Hertha Ramsey Cress Chair in Medicine; director, Vanderbilt University Institute of Imaging Science
- Ken Lau, associate professor of cell and developmental biology
- Craig Lindsley, University Professor of Pharmacology, Biochemistry and Chemistry; William K. Warren, Jr. Chair in Medicine; co-director, Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery
- Jodi Nunnari, PhD’89; distinguished professor and chair, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, University of California–Davis
- Jennifer Pietenpol, executive vice president for research, VUMC; Benjamin F. Byrd Jr. Chair in Oncology; professor of biochemistry and otolaryngology; director, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center
- Kimryn Rathmell, Hugh J. Morgan Chair in Medicine; chair, Department of Medicine
- Tiffany Richardson,D. candidate in molecular physiology and biophysics
- Steven Townsend, associate professor of chemistry