Charles E. Palm, Cornell dean of the College of Agriculture from 1959 to 1972 and the university's first Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor of Agricultural Sciences, died Feb. 25 at the Cayuga Medical Center in Ithaca. He was 84.

As a true leader and innovator in many scientific and academic fronts, Palm's efforts led to an expanded role for entomology and the science of integrated pest management as well as the broadening the college's educational goals.

Born in Austin, Texas, in 1911, he grew up on a fruit and vegetable farm. In 1931, Palm graduated from the University of Arkansas with a bachelor's degree with honors. He earned a Cornell doctorate in entomology in 1935 and was appointed an instructor at the university. He was named assistant professor in 1937. The following year, he was promoted to professor and was named Chairman of the Department of Entomology at age 27, a post he held for 20 years.

Expanding the entomology department, Palm initiated such new programs as insect toxicology, insect biochemistry and insect physiology. He established the pesticide residue program and, in 1939 with colleagues, convened the university's first pesticide conference which brought research, extension and industry together to share the latest information.

After a two-year stint as director of research from 1957 to 1959, he became dean of the College of Agriculture. His tenure led to Cornell's increased part in global agriculture, as he approved professor exchanges and special missions. Palm established the office of International Agriculture Development, the first of its kind among land-grant universities.

Palm also helped to inaugurate Cornell's Division of Biological Sciences, carefully planning it as a joint venture between the College of Agriculture and the College of Arts and Sciences. He also convened faculty, alumni, administrators and legislators to rename his college the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences -- to reflect a better designation of the institution's modern mission.

Palm played an integral role on the national agriculture scene. He chaired the National Academy of Sciences -- National Research Council's Committee on Plant and Animal Pests. That committee published a six-volume treatise that provides the background for today's pest management practices.

In 1972, Palm became the first Liberty Hyde Bailey Professor of Agricultural Sciences, a chair named for one of the university's premiere horticulturists. Palm retired in 1976 as emeritus professor of entomology.

Palm was a member of many honorary societies, including Phi Kappa Phi, Phi Beta Kappa, Sigma Xi, Alpha Zeta and Ho-Nun- De-Kah. The University of Arkansas honored him as an outstanding graduate.

Palm leaves his wife, Geraldine Gibson, of Ithaca, N.Y., and one son, Alan Scott Palm, of Washington, D.C.