Contact: Maridith Geuder
Peter W. Rabideau
The dean of Iowa State University's College of Liberal Arts and Sciences is being named to the second-ranking position at Mississippi State University.
Peter W. Rabideau will become the provost and vice president for academic affairs. A professor of chemistry, Rabideau earlier served as dean of the College of Basic Sciences at Louisiana State University.
"Dr. Rabideau emerged as the candidate ideally suited for this vital position by virtue of his outstanding credentials as a scholar, his extensive critical experience as an academic dean at two land-grant universities, and his reputation for getting important things done," said MSU President Charles Lee.
At Mississippi State, the provost and vice president for academic affairs is the chief academic officer of the university and the second-ranking institutional executive officer. The position provides leadership for MSU's eight academic colleges, with oversight for academic programs and services, institutional effectiveness of academic programs, and recruitment and development of faculty.
"This position is critical to Mississippi State's goal of becoming a premier undergraduate teaching and research institution," Lee noted. MSU currently enrolls more than 16,600 students and has more than 930 full-time faculty members.
At Iowa State, Rabideau developed the concept for a recently implemented Institute for Science and Society, a partnership between the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences and the College of Agriculture. The institute studies the impact of science on society, as well as that of society on the conduct and use of scientific research.
He also recruited the leadership team to develop a $10 million endowment campaign for the music and theater department, among other accomplishments.
"Mississippi State is a fine university and it is a privilege and honor for me to become its provost and vice president for academic affairs," Rabideau said.
He added: "I believe the next 5-10 years will be critical to MSU, and it will define itself as one of the major research universities in the Southeast. Of course, we must remember that while reputations are typically made on the basis of research and other creative activity, MSU needs to continue to be strong in its instructional program. Teaching and learning, especially within the undergraduate program, must always be the core upon which the other activities of the university are built."
Rabideau holds a bachelor's degree from Loyola University of Chicago and master's and doctoral degrees from Case Western Reserve University. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and has held national appointments with the American Chemical Society and the Council of Colleges of Arts and Sciences.
Rabideau will succeed George Verrall, who has served in an interim capacity for the past 18 months.