Dear UH System Faculty and Staff,
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Diane Z. Chase as the next University of Houston System senior vice chancellor for academic affairs and University of Houston senior vice president for academic affairs and provost. Her appointment will be effective February 2023, pending approval by the UH System Board of Regents.
Dr. Chase joins UHS and UH from Claremont Graduate University where she served as vice president for academic innovation, student success and strategic initiatives. In this role, she oversaw the entire student life cycle, including recruiting, admissions, onboarding, student experience, retention, graduation and related student outcomes to ensure transformative graduate education.
Dr. Chase holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a highly regarded archaeologist and prolific scholar who is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She brings extensive experience as a leader in higher education, having served as vice provost for academic program quality at the University of Central Florida before moving to UNLV, where as executive vice president and provost, she focused on elevating the university’s research, teaching and community impact, as well as boosting student success.
Dr. Chase’s research focuses on the nexus of history and archaeology, and complex societies, sustainability, and urbanism in reconstructing past lifeways of the ancient Maya. With her husband, Dr. Arlen Chase, a professor at Pomona College, she has directed the archaeological excavations at Caracol, Belize (http://www.caracol.org). Her recent work incorporates the use of lidar to penetrate the jungle canopy and reconstruct the ancient city.
Let me take this opportunity to thank Interim Provost Bob McPherson for stepping into this important leadership role when needed as he has done throughout his distinguished career of service at the University. He has been a great colleague, a trusted adviser and a focused administrator during his term as interim provost.
I would also like to thank the 16-member Search Committee co-chaired by Drs. Catherine Horn and Ramanan Krishnamoorti for their leadership in every aspect of this outstanding search. It has taken many hours of dedicated work, and the university community is very appreciative of their efforts.
For more information, please see our news release about her appointment.
Renu Khator
Chancellor, University of Houston System
