The University of Wisconsin-Madison announced Monday the interim vice chancellor for research and dean of the Graduate School, a position that is currently the target of potential restructuring.
Chancellor Rebecca Blank appointed Marsha Mailick, the current director of the UW-Madison Waisman Center, to the temporary position, according to a university release.
“I’m appreciative of the confidence inherent in the appointment,” Mailick said in the release. “Leadership transitions are never easy, but I think I can help in this process.”
Mailick follows in the footsteps of Martin Cadwallader, who intends on returning to the faculty after serving the position since 2002.
In the role, she will assume responsibility of the approximately 9,400 graduate students across campus, as well as oversee more than $1 billion in annual university research endeavors, as stated in the release.
Though her work as vice chancellor and dean does not begin until Sept. 1, Mailick will begin her transition into the role by working in the Graduate School full-time starting Aug. 4.
The exact details of the position’s future hinges on a decision regarding a restructuring of the leadership roles between research and the Graduate School.
A working group, charged by the university, set out earlier this semester to look at the efficacy of dividing the responsibilities of the position to have two people doing the job currently done by one person.
Faculty Senate is set to hear final recommendations from University Committee May 5 in terms of what steps will be made in the future to potentially change the position’s job requirements.
