CISS Renewed for Five Years; Carr Reappointed as CISS Director
The Center for Innovation in Social Science has been renewed for five years! CAS Dean Stan Sclaroff has reappointed Deborah Carr (A&S Distinguished Professor of Sociology) as director of the Center for Innovation in Social Science. Carr, who has served as inaugural director since CISS’s launch in 2021, will serve an additional three-year term through June 30, 2028.
CISS underwent a successful five-year review and subsequent renewal in Fall 2025. The site visit team included Jason M. Kamilar (Professor of Anthropology and Director, Institute for Social Research, UMass-Amherst), Jennifer Musto (Associate Professor of Women’s & Gender Studies, and Director of the Knapp Social Science Center, Wellesley College), Sara Shostak (Professor of Sociology and Health: Science, and Policy [HSSP]) and Founding Dean of the School of Social Sciences and Social Policy, Brandeis University), and Muhammad Zaman (HHMI Professor of Biomedical Engineering; Director of Center on Forced Displacement, Boston University).
The team’s evaluation noted “The committee was unanimous in its observation that CISS has had extraordinary success in the last five years. Throughout our conversations with staff, faculty, CISS collaborators, as well as undergraduate and graduate students, we learned about how incredible the center has been in providing essential financial and intellectual support, creating a caring community, and fostering collaborations. The success of the center has been, in no small part, a direct result of the philanthropic leadership and extraordinary dedication.” The report praised the essential contributions of CISS center administrator Shannon Landis and CISS grants administrator Chris Chiofolo.
CISS is grateful to Dean Sclaroff and Associate Dean for the Social Sciences Faculty Arianne Chernock, and our affiliates, steering committee members, and student interns for their many contributions. To learn more about CISS milestones over its initial five year period, please read our annual reports.