Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences

Advertising Copy: The University of Vermont (UVM), one of the nation's premier public research universities, seeks an accomplished and inspiring academic leader to serve as Dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS). This is an exceptional opportunity to lead a vital academic unit that engages in interdisciplinary programs and innovative research in agriculture, food systems and the broad range of life sciences to address emerging needs of society. The College seeks a dynamic, creative, visionary Dean who can lead the College into a collaborative and impactful future.

Enhanced by an array of physical resources that include research stations, farms, and horticultural facilities, the College plays an integral role in UVM's research and outreach missions. It also supports a wide range of interdisciplinary initiatives across the University, including the Institute for Agroecology, the Gund Institute for Environment, and graduate programs in food systems and ecological economics. Additionally, as home to the Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station and UVM Extension, CALS helps communities across the state find innovative solutions to the challenges they face. In each of these dimensions, the work of CALS takes full advantage of Vermont's unique position as a living laboratory for agriculture and the life sciences. Next to the Larner College of Medicine, CALS faculty bring in more sponsored research funding than any other college at the University.
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS)
The College of Agriculture and Life Sciences educates community-driven innovators who are ready to address the human and environmental challenges of our time. CALS supports students who chart their own path through local engagement, entrepreneurial thinking, and applied research, to create healthy, resilient futures for people and planet.CALS offers dynamic programs in life sciences, human and animal sciences, and social sciences. Foci include nutrition and food science, agriculture and landscape design, plant biology, applied economics, communications, entrepreneurship, sustainable and resilient communities, and the complex web of food systems.While connected to agricultural education of the past, CALS programs address current and future issues that will affect Vermont, the nation, and the world. Enrolling nearly 1,400 undergraduate and 200 graduate students, and supported by 120 faculty, the College's general fund budget is nearly $20 million.As part of the University of Vermont, the state's flagship research and land-grant institution, CALS is charged with integrating higher education, research, and Extension to address the needs of Vermont's citizens, communities, and organizations. This is accomplished with research conducted through the Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station (AES) and research-based education and internships provided by UVM Extension (EXT) faculty and staff. Both AES and EXT are housed within CALS.
Academic Programs
CALS is structured around six departments: Agriculture, Landscape, and Environment (formerly known as Plant & Soil Science); Animal and Veterinary Sciences; Community Development and Applied Economics; Nutrition and Food Sciences; Plant Biology; and Microbiology and Molecular Genetics (which is shared with the Larner College of Medicine). It also includes two undergraduate interdisciplinary programs shared with other colleges: Biological Science, and Biochemistry. UVM was the first university in the country to offer a full complement of academic programs in Food Systems, from an undergraduate degree to a Ph.D. Undergraduates who major in this innovative, interdisciplinary program take classes in all six of the College's departments.CALS' diverse selection of majors (14), along with wide-ranging minors (20) and concentrations (18), appeals to a broad audience of students interested in agriculture, basic science, applied science, or linking applied work to the social sciences. There also is a Self-Designed Bachelor of Science major in which students are encouraged to explore a diverse range of CALS-related learning opportunities both inside and outside of the classroom, including internships and independent studies aligned with their interests.CALS offers five doctoral programs and eight master's programs, in addition to cross-college interdisciplinary master's and doctoral programs in Food Systems. These include two professional Masters programs, Dietetics (MSD) and Public Administration (MPA).More information on academics in CALS can be found here:
Research
CALS has a growing research portfolio, with approximately $40 million in sponsored project funding in both 2022 and 2023. In 2019, the College was selected to lead a partnership with the USDA Agricultural Research Service (ARS). This designation as an ARS Center positions the College to lead exciting new research opportunities with researchers from the USDA.The largest source of outside research funding is the National Institute of Food and Agriculture/USDA, followed by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases/NIH; the Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food, and Markets; and the National Science Foundation. Capacity-building grants, including Hatch from the USDA and Smith-Lever, along with grants from the Renewable Resources Extension Act Program (RREA), and the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP), are also important funding sources.CALS maintains a number of off-campus research facilities that provide important resources to support faculty research and student research. There are four key agricultural facilities, including two sites of historical significance to both the University and the state:
Proctor Maple Research Center : This is a 197-acre Field Research Station for the Department of Plant Biology. Vermont is the country's largest producer of maple syrup, and Proctor has been a national leader since the early 1890s in cutting-edge maple research and technology. Research emphasizes the sugar maple tree and its products (sap and syrup), including techniques for efficient sap collection and evaporation systems to improve maple syrup quality. The Proctor Center's two major stands of sugar maple trees and a modern sugarhouse serve as a field classroom for students, scientists, and maple producers.
Morgan Horse Farm: The University of Vermont Morgan Horse Farm has been a proud steward of the U.S. Government Morgan Horse bloodline since 1951, when the U.S. Department of Agriculture first bestowed the farm to the State of Vermont, which in turn entrusted it to the University. Since then, this 200-acre farm has raised over 850 UVM Morgans, educated over 220 student apprentices, and welcomed hundreds of thousands of visitors to the Weybridge, Vermont campus.
Paul R. Miller Research and Educational Center (MREC) and Ellen A. Hardacre Equine Center: Serving as a research site for UVM's Animal and Veterinary Sciences programs, the MREC supports a herd of more than 100 dairy animals plus 22 horses and 150 acres of farmland. In addition to dairy and equine science, research priorities at the site include biosecurity and safety. Students assume leadership roles in many activities, most notably the CREAM (Cooperative for Real Education in Agricultural Management) Program, a two- semester experiential learning program open to students across the University in which participants manage the dairy herd and learn about the scientific and business sides of farm operations. The Ellen A. Hardacre Equine Center is run as a student cooperative and provides state-of-the-art indoor and outdoor riding facilities, access to a riding trail, and stalls for 22 horses. It is also an academic laboratory hosting numerous hands-on equine-focused courses.
The University of Vermont Horticultural Research and Education Center (HREC) : HREC is home to UVM's Agriculture, Landscape, and Environment programs, supporting research, teaching, and outreach activities regarding the production of Northern apples, grapes, forage, and grain, as well as pest management. The facility is a repository of ornamental plant species of interest to the horticulture industry. The Catamount Educational Farm was launched as part of the HREC in 2014 to provide opportunities for research on long-term soil fertility, crop planning, and sustainable agriculture. The Center grows over 50 varieties of apples and produces other fruits and vegetables for nearly 100 shares of Community Supported Agriculture (CSAs). Students manage many of the activities at the facility as a part of their education in farm operations.
Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station
The Vermont Agricultural Experiment Station (VT-AES), created in 1886, is a state/federal partnership designed to address Vermont's agricultural issues through research. Currently led by Director Eric von Wettberg, VT-AES is comprised of approximately 40 faculty researchers across the CALS academic departments.With many contemporary threats, agriculture and communities must be resilient and sustainable. This is the focus of VT-AES research. In FY23, Hatch and Hatch Multistate projects addressed agricultural viability, animal and human health, and food-systems, community systems, and eco-systems. The impact of climate change is embedded across VT-AES projects. For example, resilience of the environment is covered by projects addressing soil health, carbon sequestration and forest health, renewable energy, composting, water quality and crop diversity. Projects also address threats to the environment and agriculture posed by invasive pests, plants . click apply for full job details