Newswise — Following a national search, American University President Neil Kerwin has named Scott A. Bass as the university's new provost. Bass is currently vice president for research and dean of the graduate school at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC). He will start July 1.
As chief academic officer, Bass will provide leadership for AU's six schools and colleges, University Library, Washington Semester, AU Abroad/Abroad at AU, the Center for Teaching Excellence, Enrollment, Institutional Research and Assessment, Sponsored Programs, the Registrar and the Career Center.
"Dr. Bass has developed an impressive knowledge of contemporary higher education through his work at UMBC and in previous positions," said President Kerwin. "As a key member of UMBC's senior management group, Dr. Bass has been deeply involved in all significant aspects of the university's academic mission, and he has played a central role in shaping the strategic plan, which includes faculty development, undergraduate programs and enrollment management."
Bass has managed a growing research and graduate enterprise at UMBC, with five major campus-wide research centers directly reporting to him. He has had overall responsibility for setting the vision and direction for graduate education and research, including recruitment, new initiatives, program and center reviews, academic policy, progressions and graduation. He has been responsible for technology transfer, sponsored programs, compliance with state and federal scientific regulations and collaborative research partnerships with federal laboratories, government agencies, other universities and the private sector.
Since coming to UMBC in 1996, Bass has overseen the more than doubling of external grants and contracts (from $36 million to $89 million) and a tripling of federal research and development funding. In graduate education, he created recruitment strategies and new program initiatives that resulted in an 83 percent growth in graduate enrollments over the past eight years, and he launched campus-wide efforts that increased the representation of minorities and women in graduate education. In 2002, UMBC earned the Council of Graduate Schools/Peterson's Award for Innovation in Promoting an Inclusive Graduate Education Community.
"I am thrilled to join the AU community and become part of a dynamic leadership team forging an ambitious plan for the university's future," Bass said. "It is an honor to be selected as chief academic officer of one of the nation's great academic treasures. I am convinced that with the support and engagement of all members of the AU community, including friends and alumni, we can move forward into an academic golden age reflecting a vision of the new American University— dynamic, diverse, inclusive, creative and contributing in a significant way to a better global society."
Prior to UMBC, Bass served at the University of Massachusetts Boston for 17 years in a number of positions, including professor in the College of Public and Community Service, director of the Gerontology Institute, graduate program director of the Ph.D. Program in Gerontology and head of the Gerontology Center.
Bass earned a combined doctorate in psychology and education from the University of Michigan, where he also earned an M.A. in clinical psychology and a B.A. in psychology. A nationally known gerontologist, Bass has written or edited eight books, 45 articles, earned a Fulbright Research Scholarship to Japan and is a fellow of the Gerontological Society of America. He has served as co-editor of Aging and Social Policy and on the editorial boards of several other journals. In 2004, he was a visiting professor at Stanford University. Bass replaces Interim Provost Ivy Broder, who has served since summer 2005 after being appointed by then Interim President Neil Kerwin.
Located in Washington, D.C., American University is a leader in global education, enrolling a diverse student body from throughout the United States and nearly 140 countries and providing opportunities for academic excellence, public service and internships in the nation's capital and around the world.
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