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  Charles Mitchell

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  E. Bruce Pitman

By SUE WUETCHER

Published: March 10, 2011

Two longtime College of Arts and Sciences faculty members have emerged as finalists to succeed CAS Dean Bruce D. McCombe, and they will meet with members of the university community after spring break.

The candidates are Charles E. Mitchell, SUNY Distinguished Teaching Professor in the Department of Geology, and E. Bruce Pitman, professor of mathematics and associate dean for research and sponsored programs in CAS.

Meetings for interested faculty, staff and students will be held with Mitchell on March 22 and with Pitman on March 23. The schedule:

March 22

• 9:30-10:30 a.m., meeting with faculty, Student Union Theater.
• 11:20 a.m.-noon, meeting with staff from the CAS dean’s office, 830 Clemens.
• 4:10-5 p.m., meeting with students, Student Union Theater.

March 23

• 9:30-10:30 a.m., meeting with faculty, 120 Clemens Hall.
• 11:20 a.m.-noon, meeting with staff from the CAS dean’s office, 280 Park Hall.
• 4:10-5 p.m., meeting with students, 104 Knox Hall.

The committee formed to conduct the search for the new dean selected Mitchell and Pitman as its finalists after interviewing “a strong pool of candidates,” noted committee chair Harvey G. Stenger Jr., dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

The search began after McCombe, who also holds the title of SUNY Distinguished Professor in the Department of Physics, announced that he would step down as dean in June after five years in the post.

Provost Satish K. Tripathi had directed the panel to recruit a new dean from within the current UB faculty.

Both Mitchell and Pitman have extensive administrative experience at UB.

Mitchell served as department chair from 2002-08 and currently is a member of the President’s Review Board. He also is director of graduate studies for the geology department and co-director of the Graduate Group in Evolutionary Biology and Ecology, and the Stratigraphy and Paleontology Research Group, an interdisciplinary research group composed of stratigraphers, paleontologists, geochemists and structural geologists working on a number of projects, both locally and throughout the world.

As associate dean, Pitman is responsible for CAS’ seven science departments, as well as the college’s sponsored research activities. He also served as vice provost for educational technology from 2000-03, was co-chair of the Graduate Group in High Performance Computing from 1992-95 and director of graduate studies in the Department of Mathematics from 1997-99.

As chair for education and outreach for the Center for Computational Research, he organizes an annual workshop for high school students on computational science.

A UB faculty member since 1983, Mitchell’s specialty areas include paleobiology, biostratigraphy, Appalachian Basin history and Ordovician geology, specifically graptolite fossils.

A prolific scholar, he has authored or co-authored numerous scholarly publications and delivered presentations at professional meetings.

Mitchell is a recipient of a SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching, a Milton Plesur Award for Excellence in Teaching from the UB undergraduate Student Association and a Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching from the former UB Faculty of Natural Sciences and Mathematics.

He received a BSc from Ohio State University, an MS from the University of Western Ontario, and a PhD from Harvard, where renowned paleontologist Stephen J. Gould served as his advisor.

Pitman, who joined the UB faculty in 1989, also holds an adjunct appointment in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.

His research interests include modeling and computing in two areas: geophysical mass flows, including volcanic avalanches, block and ash flows, and debris flows; and renal hemodynamics—the processes by which the kidneys filter blood to produce urine.

The author or co-author of more than 50 papers and reports, his research has been funded by the National Science Foundation, the National Institutes of Health and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

He also has developed an advanced (graduate) certificate in computational science in conjunction with the Center for Computational Research, as well as organized an undergraduate degree and an advanced certificate, both in bioinformatics and computational biology.

Pitman holds a BA in physics and mathematics from Northwestern University and an MS and PhD in mathematics, both from Duke University.

For further information about the search and to view the candidates’ CVs, visit the search website.