George L. McLendon, chairman of the chemistry department at Princeton University, will become Duke University’s next dean of the faculty of Arts and Sciences, Duke Provost Peter Lange announced Monday in Durham, N.C.
Professor McLendon’s appointment takes effect July 1. He will succeed William H. Chafe, a historian who has served as dean since 1995.
Professor McLendon was recommended by an 11-member campus search committee, which reviewed some 130 internal and external candidates.
He will take the helm of the academic unit that lies at the heart of Duke. Nearly 600 faculty members in Arts and Sciences departments and programs teach courses ranging from quantum physics to Chinese philosophy, with many also participating in interdisciplinary units.
Professor McLendon said Duke is unusual in having its Arts and Sciences core bound so tightly to the rest of the university. "Arts and Sciences is in remarkable proximity to several truly great professional schools, and there are opportunities to build new bridges to enrich undergraduate and graduate studies," he said.
Citing a recent study by Duke Student Government that expressed concern about retaining Duke’s special character, Professor McLendon said, "I think they had a good point when they said, ‘We don’t want to be another Ivy.’ There’s something uniquely special about Duke. It’s a lot younger than a place like Princeton, and much more flexible in thinking about what it wants to become."
Duke was created in 1924 by James Buchanan Duke as a memorial to his father, Washington Duke.
Professor McLendon joined Princeton in 1995 as the Russell Wellman Moore Professor of Chemistry. A year later, he became chairman of the chemistry department, a position he had held at the University of Rochester.
In recent years, Professor McLendon’s research has focused on the interaction of large biological molecules, electron transfer in chemical and biological systems and protein chemistry in processes such as the cellular control of apoptosis, the "programmed cell death" process that affects both normal development and a range of diseases. Some of his research has been applied in new diagnostic techniques for cancer.
His wife, Terry, is a physician, and their two daughters are both pursuing careers as teachers. The McLendons live in Princeton Township.
