UC Mercd Magazine-Volume XVI, Issue 2

NEW CAMPUS LEADERS Here’s a quick look at people

Some new, some familiar – who recently have assumed leadership roles at UCMerced.

From left to right -Top: Rakesh Goel, Betsy Dumont, Delia Saenz Middle: Daniel Okoli, Christiane Spitzmüller, Hrant Hratchian, Heather French, Lela Dennis, Bottom: Hector Escalante, Jackson Muhirwe

RakeshGoel Dean, School of Engineering

Goel comes to the San Joaquin Valley from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where he served as the College of Engineering’s executive associate dean. He managed the college’s day-to-day operations, along with a $40 million state-side budget and a $40 million gift and endowment fund. Goel has an expansive background in civil engineering research and is a national and international leader in the discipline of earthquake analysis and design structures. He joined UC Merced in October. Betsy Dumont Dean, School of Natural Sciences Dumont has been reappointed to the role she has held since joining UC Merced in August 2017. Under her direction, the school has more than doubled per capita research expenditures while decreasing the DFW rate of lower-division courses by nearly 60%. More than half the 33 faculty hired by the school since Dumont became dean identify as women. The school also established the university’s first Living Learning Communities for students. Delia Saenz Vice Chancellor and Chief Diversity Officer Saenz presides over the newly instituted Division of Equity, Justice and Inclusive Excellence. Saenz, a native Texan, came to UC Merced from Arizona State University, where she was chief diversity officer of ASU’s largest college, LiberalArts&Sciences. Saenzbrings the academic rigor of a social psychologist and the sharply honed talents of a facilitator and problem-solver to a university that has staked its reputation as a place where students from underrepresented backgrounds and cultures arewelcomed and nurtured – a place to thrive. Daniel Okoli Vice Chancellor and Chief Operating Officer Daniel Okoli brings a long resume, stretching from the Arizona’s high desert to south Wisconsin’s lakeshores and beyond, to UC Merced. Okoli came to the San Joaquin Valley

California and held academic roles at Holy Names University in Oakland, Sonoma State and UC Riverside. An active member in national higher education organizations, French has presented on topics that range from white privilege to assessment and learning outcomes to restorative justice. Lela Dennis Dennis brings more than 25 years of experience in human resources in public and nonprofit sectors to UC Merced. She comes from UC Riverside, where she was deputy chief human resources officer and human resources director of employee and organizational development. Dennis earned an M.A. in organizational management from Ashford University. Her motto: “Building big relationships equals bold results.” Hector Escalante Ombudsperson Escalante comes to UC Merced from University of the Pacific, where he served as the UOP’s first ombuds. Escalante immigrated from Baja California to the United States with his family when he was 2 years old. The long-time Californian and Marine veteran holds a doctorate in education. Escalante specializes in conflict resolution, healthy communication, and learning and development. JacksonMuhirwe Chief Information Security Officer Muhirwe has more than decades worth of experience in information technology and cybersecurity leadership and faculty roles. He comes to UC Merced from UC Davis, where he was deputy chief information security officer. Previously, he worked for the City and County of San Francisco as interim chief information security officer and director of cybersecurity services. Associate Vice Chancellor and Chief Human Resources Officer

from Flagstaff, Ariz., where since 2017 he served as Northern Arizona University’s vice president for capital planning and development. Previously, Okoli spent 12 years at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, overseeing more than $3 billion in capital projects. Okoli also held planning and development roles at The Ohio State University and Pace University in New York. Christiane Spitzmüller Vice Provost for Academic Affairs and Strategy Spitzmüeller, who will join UC Merced in September, comes to UC Merced from the University of Houston, where she serves as project director of a nine-institution research consortium dedicated to examining validity and bias in promotion and tenure decision- making. Spitzmüeller, a psychology professor, also has led efforts to increase faculty grant expenditures and representation of under- represented populations in a variety of roles. Hrant Hratchian Vice Provost and Dean for Graduate Education Leadership roles are nothing new to Hratchian, who assumes his new role after serving as chair of UC Merced’s Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. A member of the university’s faculty since 2013, Hratchian also served as interim co-director of cyberinfrastructure and research computing and chaired the Academic Senate’s Graduate Council. The longtime researcher has been honored with a Hellman Foundation Fellowship and an NSF Career award. Heather French Associate Vice Chancellor and Dean of Students French comes to UCMerced from Fontbonne University in St. Louis, where she was vice president for student affairs and chief diversity officer. French earned a doctorate of education from St. Mary’s College of

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