MILWAUKEE __ The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee is pleased to announce the appointment of Scott Gronert as its new dean of the College of Letters & Science.

The Letters & Science dean leads the largest of UWM’s 15 schools and colleges, comprised of 25 academic departments divided into three core disciplines: humanities, natural sciences and social sciences. During the 2018 fiscal year, L&S faculty earned more than $20 million in external research funding.

Scott Gronert brings more than a decade of administrative leadership experience and more than 25 years of chemistry-research experience to UWM. A native Californian who earned his PhD at UC-Berkeley, Gronert conducted postdoctoral research at the University of Colorado and taught for 16 years at San Francisco State University. He accepted a professorship at Virginia Commonwealth University in 2009, progressing from professor to department chair to associate dean for research in seven years. His accomplishments as an associate dean for research include:

*$21 million in research awards collegewide in 2016-17

*Ten percent increase in grant applications collegewide

*Increase in chemistry bachelor’s degrees awarded, from 59 in 2009 to 134 in 2015, resulting in the department becoming the No. 2 Chemistry Department in the U.S. for baccalaureate chemistry degrees awarded to women and No. 3 in the U.S. for baccalaureate degrees awarded to African-Americans.

“Every university I’ve been a part of, from San Francisco State to VCU to UWM, share a common mission of faculty and students engaging in research and scholarship at the highest levels and opening their doors to the broadest, most diverse set of students,” says Gronert. “People might look at my career and see the research side, but I’ve spent a great deal of time looking at student success. I really appreciate both pieces of the mission. I’m excited to work with new colleagues at UWM to continue to advance our research mission and develop student talent across the college.”

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