SUBJECT:

Dean, Division of Social Sciences

Dr. Jeffrey Elman has announced his intention to conclude his tenure as Dean of the Division of Social Sciences, effective June 30, 2014 to devote his full attention to teaching, research and service as a Distinguished Professor in the UC San Diego Department of Cognitive Science.

An internationally recognized scholar of psycholinguistics and artificial neural networks and member of the UC San Diego faculty since 1977, Dr. Elman's contributions to the University in both service and scholarship have been extraordinary. Dr. Elman is a founding member of the UC San Diego Department of Cognitive Science, the first of its kind in the world, and was founding co-Director of the Kavli Institute for Brain and Mind at UC San Diego. He served as Chair of the Cognitive Science Department from 1995-1998 and Associate Dean of the Division of Social Sciences from 2002-2006 prior to his service as Dean. In 2007 Dr. Elman was honored with the prestigious David E. Rumelhart Prize in recognition of his groundbreaking contributions to the theoretical foundations of cognitive science, a relatively new field which brings together numerous disciplines for the study of the mind. Dr. Elman holds the Chancellor's Associates Chair in Cognitive Science.

As Dean, Dr. Elman has provided a strong vision for the Social Sciences at UC San Diego as a division that supports research, teaching and service in the public interest. He leads a dynamic and highly ranked academic division with over 9,000 undergraduates, 600 graduate students, and faculty spanning ten academic departments and sixteen interdisciplinary programs and research centers that focus on some of the most pressing and important social issues of our time. Dr. Elman spearheaded the development of the Yankelovich Center for Social Science Research, a new center that fosters problem centered, innovative, interdisciplinary research that addresses issues of social importance. Also under his leadership, the Center on Global Justice was formalized as an ORU, the Department of Education Studies received department status, and the Center for Research on Educational Equity, Assessment, and Teaching Excellence (CREATE) launched the CREATE STEM Success initiative, a visionary initiative linking faculty, staff and students across multiple campus divisions and the local education community, in a shared effort to support K-20 STEM education in the San Diego region. Additionally, divisional faculty in Cognitive Sciences and Psychology helped to shape the national BRAIN Initiative recently announced by President Obama, and are playing an integral role in the newly established Center for Brain Activity Mapping (CBAM).

Please join us in thanking Dean Elman for his longstanding service to the Division of Social Sciences and the campus. We are truly fortunate that UC San Diego will continue to benefit from his engagement and service as a distinguished member of our faculty. An international search for a new Dean of the Division of Social Sciences will be launched shortly.

Pradeep K. Khosla Chancellor Suresh Subramani Executive Vice Chancellor