Dr. 詹姆斯Peliska Promoted to Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences at Mary
俾斯麦，和 Following a nationwide search, the University of Mary has appointed Dr. 詹姆斯Peliska as the third dean of the School of Arts and Sciences. Peliska brings more than 30 years of teaching, 领导, and science research experience to the position, including the past seven at the University of Mary as administrative chair of math and science programs and as associate dean, 医学预科项目的主席, 生物化学教授, 化学, 和生物学.
“Not only does the 教师 in our School of Arts and Sciences foster large and growing academic programs in fields of study that touch upon the central questions of human life, these impressive scholars also offer formative education to every student in our 专业 schools even while grounding the entire University more deeply in our Christian, 天主教, and Benedictine mission” noted Monsignor James Shea, 立博中文版的校长. “I have every confidence that 詹姆斯Peliska will bring out the very best in both his 教师 and in the students who will now be under his watchful care. A man of strong Christian faith, steadiness of temperament, and prayerful discernment, Dr. Peliska’s willingness to assume this office of service is a gift of providential grace.”
“I was initially drawn to the University of Mary by the meaningful and transformational impact this community has on the educational, 专业, and spiritual development of its students, 教师, 和工作人员. Over the past seven years, my commitment to the University's mission has only grown stronger. I am deeply humbled and grateful for the opportunity to play a part in this important work as Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences”, Peliska说.
值得注意的是, beyond his day-to-day responsibilities as head of math and science at Mary, Peliska has been most known and revered for transforming and reinvigorating 教师-directed pedagogical research among students within the department. 在他的领导下, Mary has been awarded more than $1 million in funding to support research endeavors like the Summer Undergraduate Research and Vocational Experience (SURVE) program, which has become one of the cornerstones of the University’s vibrant summer sessions.
在佩利斯卡的职权范围内, the University has experienced a significant increase in the number of students entering competitive post-baccalaureate graduate programs in the sciences, 进入医学院, and other health-related 专业 programs. He’s increased the scientific equipment infrastructure and orchestrated lab facility upgrades.
Peliska initiated the first formal, comprehensive pre-medicine program at the University of Mary. This initiative develops a cross-disciplinary environment within the University’s academic community and builds collaborative relationships with local and regional health care providers and medical 领导. The primary goal of the program is to develop an academic, 社会, and 专业 environment to serve those students at Mary who wish to pursue a vocation in medicine or medical research.
Peliska has more than 20 peer-reviewed papers and over 2000 academic citations to date. He is currently working on a new book called, “克隆, Purification and Derivatization of Recombinant Protein,和一份题为, “The Construction of a Glutamine Sensor: An Advanced Lab Research Project in Bio化学.” He’s earned the Chemistry Undergraduate Award from the American Chemical Society, and the National Institutes of Health granted him the Postdoctoral Fellowship Award. Peliska often serves as a scientific reviewer for the journals “Bio化学,《立博中文版》,”“核糖核酸,” and the book publishers Macmillan and Wiley and Top Hat.
Peliska came to the University of Mary in 2017 from Ave Maria University, where he was the school’s founding science 教师 member and eventual chair (2002-2004) when it first opened in Michigan, and then later as it relocated to its current Florida campus. 在那里, he became directly and extensively involved in the architectural design of the new campus’s teaching and research spaces and was one of two founding members in the initiation and development of a comprehensive natural science program. 在这些年间(2004-2017), Peliska acquired extensive experience in all aspects of department and curriculum development, 包括教师招聘和评估, 预算的形成, 课程发展及评估, research and teaching facilities development, 以及学生的学术和职业建议.
After graduating with honors and earning dual degrees in 化学 和生物学 from Northland College and a Ph.D. in organic 化学 at the University of Wisconsin, Peliska’s first academic appointments were at Penn State (1990-1993) and the University of Michigan (1993-2001).
Peliska will begin his service as dean on May 1.