The Graduate School has appointed Robert (Bob) Weiss, professor of molecular genetics and associate dean for research and graduate education at the Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine, to a new senior associate dean position in the Graduate School to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to enhance programming and support for life science graduate fields at Cornell.

Credit: Provided

“One overarching goal of the Graduate School is to expand resources for supporting graduate education at Cornell. With Bob on board, we’ll focus on coordinating with a number of offices across the university to build support for various opportunities, including development of training grants,” said Kathryn J. Boor, dean of the Graduate School and vice provost for graduate education.

“We are delighted to have Bob on the team. As a faculty member dean focused on research and education in the graduate fields, this position really complements the existing professional staff at the Graduate School,” Boor added.

As senior associate dean, Weiss will focus on evaluating ways to further strengthen graduate education across the life sciences. Weiss will continue to hold his position as a faculty member in the Department of Biomedical Sciences at the College of Veterinary Medicine, where his research focuses on developing mouse models to study how genomic instability and metabolic dysfunction affect mammalian development and tumorigenesis.

“Bob is an exceptional faculty member and leader in the College of Veterinary Medicine,” said Lorin Warnick, the Austin O. Hooey Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine. “As associate dean for research and graduate education, he helped grow our programs, oversaw a substantial increase in externally funded research and ensured the Veterinary College met the highest possible standards in graduate education. In this new appointment, he can help build on the success of graduate programs across Cornell.”

“While we will miss him as a member of the college leadership team, I’m very excited to see the impact of his work in the Graduate School,” said Warnick.

Weiss is energized by the promise of the new role. “There are really terrific opportunities to grow our programs, modernize curricula, and keep up with the changing landscape of graduate education,” said Weiss. ‘’At Cornell, we come from a position of strength in education and research and we’re well positioned to be successful moving forward. I’m excited to be a part of that.”

The Graduate School serves Cornell by administering graduate and professional student enrollment, policies and programming for over 80 different graduate fields of study. By consolidating graduate student-specific services in one unit, the Graduate School achieves economies of scale for the colleges, alleviating administrative costs and creating a more consistent and positive student experience.

Weiss will begin his new role with the Graduate School on November 1, 2023, and will continue to lead his research laboratory at the College of Veterinary Medicine.