Process to Identify the Associate Provost of the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences
From Dr. Jean Morrison, University Provost and Chief Academic Officer
As President Brown and I recently discussed in a letter to the University community, the use of large amounts of data and increasingly sophisticated computing is transforming critically important sectors such as industry, government, higher education, and the global economy. At BU, we see this transformation reflected in the demand from our students for academic programs in computational fields and data science more broadly. We see exciting new opportunities in this unique moment and are responding through a range of major University-wide efforts. In the coming months, we anticipate breaking ground on our new Center for Computing & Data Sciences, a 380,000-square-foot building on Commonwealth Avenue that will house the College of Arts & Sciences departments of Computer Science and Mathematics & Statistics, as well as the Rafik B. Hariri Institute for Computing and Computational Science & Engineering. This new building will be a game changer for Boston University, providing a state-of-the-art home for our efforts in computing and data sciences.
As announced in our letter, in addition to investing in this new interdisciplinary building, we are also creating a new interdisciplinary academic unit: the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences (CDS). This new unit will enable us to build a constructive and collaborative interface between our traditional academic units and faculty and students interested in computing and data sciences and in the applications of these fields. The creation of a new kind of academic unit necessarily raises many questions, all of which will be carefully considered in the coming months. The first step in this planning process is to identify the leader for CDS.
Over the next three weeks, I will consult broadly across the University to identify the inaugural Associate Provost for Computing & Data Sciences. The Associate Provost will serve a crucial leadership role, working closely with me, senior academic leaders, and faculty in establishing the policies, operating principles, and strategic issues that will guide the initial efforts of the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences. This individual will have the responsibility for leading the newly created unit once it is formally established and will serve as a member of the Council of Deans. It is our goal to have the new Associate Provost identified and in place by August 1, 2019.
If you would like to nominate an individual to be considered for this position or would like to be considered yourself, please send a nomination or expression of interest via email to me at provost@bu.edu. Alternatively, please send nominations or letters of interest in writing to me at the Office of the Provost, One Silber Way. If you would like your correspondence to be held in confidence, please mark your email or the envelope “Confidential.” While nominations of individuals who are external to BU are welcome, there is a strong preference for internal candidates.
I look forward to receiving your nominations and to taking this important step in ensuring that Boston University continues to innovate and advance our capacity in this critically important area.
Process to Identify the Associate Provost of the Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences – 7.3.19