Spring 2001 -- Vol. 18, No. 1

NEW DEPARTMENT HEAD

Mixing and matching, then waiting and watching, might be one way to summarize the activities of some scientists in certain experimental settings.

Outside the laboratory, that determined and focused approach often remains--and that accounts for part of the reason Douglas R. Cavener has been named head of the Department of Biology within the Eberly College of Science at Penn State, effective at the start of the fall 2000 semester.

He comes to Penn State with four areas of focus in mind: educational programs and curriculum; faculty development; graduate and postgraduate education; and research. He plans to work toward continued improvements in all four areas of the department with the same approach, displaying a determination and focus through communication and interaction.

For the past 17 years, Cavener has worked at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. He joined that university as an assistant professor in 1982, was promoted to associate professor in 1988, and has served as a professor of molecular biology since 1993.

In the classroom, Cavener has taught a variety of courses, from introductory genetics to graduate courses in molecular biology.

His research has focused on transcriptional and translational control of gene expression using transgenic mice and Drosophila (fruit flies) as model systems. Much of his work has been a synthesis of understanding mechanisms underlying gene regulation and the evolutionary forces that help to shape them.

"Douglas Cavener is an excellent scientist who has real leadership ability," said Daniel J. Larson, dean of the Eberly College of Science. "I'm very pleased he has accepted the position of head of the Department of Biology and look forward to the continued advancement of the department in concert with the enhancement of life sciences at the University."

At Penn State, Cavener faces many challenges--among them moving from a position as one member of a department with fewer than 20 full-time faculty to the head of a department comprised of more than twice that many members, and transitioning from a private to a public university--and he eagerly awaits the start of his tenure at Penn State.

A native of northern California, Cavener earned his bachelor's degree at Pasadena College in Los Angeles in 1973. He earned his master's degree in genetics at Brown University in 1977 and his doctorate in genetics at the University of Georgia in 1980.

Cavener succeeds Robert Mitchell, professor of biology, who has served as interim head of the Department of Biology since January 1999. Mitchell previously served the department in that capacity from April 1995 to January 1997 before William Jeffrey was named department head.

Back to Science Journal Spring 2001 Index

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