Three final candidates have been named in Virginia Tech's search for a vice president for research, and the university has scheduled their interviews as well as open forums for each candidate to speak on the topic "Expanding Opportunities for Research and Scholarship at Virginia Tech."

Finalists for the position are Raymond E. Bye Jr., director for federal relations and economic development at Florida State University; Linda Dykstra, dean of the Graduate School at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the William Rand Kenan Jr. Professor in the Departments of Psychology and Pharmacology; and Bradley Fenwick, chief science advisor for the Competitive Programs of the U. S. Department of Agriculture and professor of infectious disease pathobiology at Kansas State University.

Interviews will begin with Dykstra on Jan. 18-20, with her forum presentation scheduled on Jan. 20. Bye's interview will be held Jan. 25-28, with his forum presentation on Jan. 27. Fenwick will be interviewed Feb. 8-11 and will make his presentation on Feb. 10. Each open forum will be held 3-4 p.m. in the Fralin Biotechnology Auditorium.

"I encourage everyone in the university community to attend the open forums. This is a very important position, especially as we work toward our goal of becoming one of the country's leading research institutions, and we would value input from faculty, staff, and students on the different candidates as we go through the interview process," said Mark G. McNamee, provost and vice president for academic affairs, in announcing the finalists.

Linda Dykstra

Dean of UNC's Graduate School since 1996, Dykstra is responsible for 85 academic programs and approximately 7,000 graduate students. In that position, she has developed a comprehensive strategy to increase support for graduate teaching and research assistants, obtained external funding for a bridge program between UNC and two historically black universities in the state, introduced new opportunities for graduate student professional training, promoted interdisciplinary programs throughout campus, and raised sufficient private funds to add more than 200 new interdisciplinary graduate fellowships in the past seven years.

Dykstra is an active research scientist whose laboratory work focuses on the behavioral pharmacology of opioid analgesics, both in relation to their pain-relieving properties and their tendency to produce tolerance and dependence. She has received continuous research support since 1977 from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) and has received NIH's Research Scientist Award and MERIT award.

Since joining the UNC faculty in 1972, Dykstra has been assistant chair and director of research in the psychology department, chair of the University Committee on Teaching Awards, and interim vice chancellor for research. She served as the field editor of the Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics; was president of several professional organizations, including the Psychopharmacology Division of the American Psychological Association and the College of Problems of Drug Dependence; and was a member of numerous boards, including the North Carolina Association of Biomedical Research, the Research Triangle Institute, and the National Institute on Drug Abuse. In 2005 she will become president of the Behavioral Pharmacology Division of the American Society of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics.

She received her Ph.D. in psychopharmacology and an M.A. in English from the University of Chicago and a B.A. in psychology from Hope College in Holland, Mich.

Raymond Bye

Beginning in 1972, Bye served more than 20 years with the National Science Foundation (NSF), where he spent 12 years as director of the Office of Legislative and Public Affairs, before joining the staff at Florida State University (FSU) in 1994 as associate vice president for research. In 1999 he was named interim vice president for research, and in 2000, following a national search, he was named vice president for research. In that position, he was responsible for sponsored research administration, technology transfer activities, the FSU Research Foundation, research regulatory issues, research communications programs, and several interdisciplinary programs. He also served as FSU's primary official in Washington, D.C., representing the university with research and development agencies, federal departments, and the Florida Congressional delegation and Congressional committees. Bye set a goal of doubling FSU's research awards, and the university moved from $88 million in FY1998 to $162 million at the close of FY2003. He also developed a customer-oriented sponsored research organization. In June 2003 he assumed expanded federal relations responsibilities along with leading the university's activities related to economic development.

Bye has served as president of the FSU Research Foundation, chair of the National Association of State Universities and Land-Grant Colleges' (NASULGC) Council on Governmental Affairs, and a member of the Oak Ridge National Laboratory Board of Governors. He currently sits on the board of Oak Ridge Associated Universities and the NASULGC Board of Directors. He has also been a member of the boards for the Tallahassee-Leon County Economic Development Council, Economic Club of Florida, and Leon County Research and Development Authority. Bye has received the NSF Distinguished Service Award and the President's Meritorious Executive Award.

He holds a Ph.D. and M.A. from Kent State University and a B.A. from Rhodes College, all in political science.

Brad Fenwick

As chief science advisor, Fenwick provides strategic planning and leadership for the National Research Initiative (NRI) and other integrated and educational competitive programs, which span more than 25 scientific disciplines within eight major subject areas in the biological, environmental, physical, and social sciences. He also is the principal communicator for the Competitive Programs and the NRI.

Since 1988, Fenwick has been a faculty member in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State. Board Certified by the American College of Veterinary Microbiologists, he is an expert on infectious diseases, holds three patents, and has received more than $7 million in competitive research funding. He has served in a number of capacities at the university: associate dean, assistant department head, president of the faculty, several directorships, and chair of numerous university and college committees.

Fenwick is a member of both the U.S.-European Commission Taskforce for Biotechnology and the Biotechnology Working Group of the state department's Committee on International Economic Policy. He chairs the federal interagency working group on microbial genomics for the Office of Science and Technology Policy, is a program evaluator for the Non-Proliferation Engagement of Soviet Biological Weapons Scientists – Civilian Research and Development Foundation, and is the editor of a major scientific journal. He is a Fellow with the American Council on Education and sits on the Council on Research for the American Veterinary Medical Association and the board of directors of the Council for Agricultural Science and Technology. His honors include the Beecham Award for Research Excellence, Yarborough Medicine Award, Sigma Xi Outstanding Scientist, and Kansas Distinguished Service Award.

After earning his D.V.M. and master's degrees from Kansas State University, he completed a residency in anatomic pathology and received a Ph.D. in comparative pathology from the University of California.

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