Sanders appointed vice provost of academic affairs

FROM RICE NEWS STAFF REPORTS

Paula Sanders has been appointed vice provost of academic affairs, effective Feb. 16. She will also continue to serve as dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies.

	PAULA SANDERS

”Paula will work with me on various faculty-related initiatives and serve as liaison to the Faculty Senate, deans and leadership of other entities reporting to me,” said Provost George McLendon, who announced the appointment in a letter to deans, vice presidents and provosts Jan. 28. ”She will also work to coordinate various projects, including the General Announcements, department and program reviews and other strategic initiatives. She will work in the area of communications to coordinate conversations regarding faculty issues and direct faculty inquiries.”

Sanders, a professor of history, became Rice’s first dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies in 2007.

She said that because her role as dean is focused on graduate education and her new position is focused on faculty and the full range of academic affairs, she now has an opportunity ”to continue to work toward the vertical integration of graduate students into our broader intellectual community.”

Sanders said the provost’s decision to have the dean of graduate and postdoctoral studies serve also as the vice provost for academic affairs ”shows the university’s strong commitment to include graduate students in our intellectual endeavors while we maintain the strong commitment to undergraduate education that is part of our core mission.”

In her new role, Sanders said she hopes to facilitate communication between faculty and the provost’s office in practical ways so that their ongoing teaching and research remain visible with the university’s large strategic initiatives.

”I’m very excited about being able to work closely with my faculty colleagues while continuing my work with graduate students,” Sanders said.

Before coming to Rice, Sanders taught at Harvard University as an assistant professor of history. She joined the Rice faculty in 1987 as an assistant professor of history. From 1997 to 2000 she directed the Program for the Study of Women and Gender, now the Center for the Study of Women, Gender and Sexuality.
Sanders has a bachelor’s degree in history from Northwestern University and a master’s degree and a doctorate in history, both from Princeton University.

She has been the scholar-in-residence at the American Research Center in Egypt and an invited professor at the