Zuiches Announces Retirement

Dr. James Zuiches, vice chancellor for the Office of Extension, Engagement and Economic Development, announced that he will retire by year’s end. Zuiches has led the university’s outreach programs since 2006.

“Creating jobs and building meaningful partnerships are important components of NC State’s mission and legacy,” Chancellor Randy Woodson said. “NC State has continued to build and broaden its engagement and economic portfolio under Dr. Zuiches’ leadership. We appreciate his hard work on behalf of NC State and the people of North Carolina.”

Zuiches applied the economic development industry cluster model to connect the university to state and regional business growth and recruitment priorities. He has presented two dozen papers in the United States and at international Triple Helix conferences on such topics as  the university’s accelerators of innovation, economic cluster development strategies, public/private partnerships and Centennial Campus, and the impact of seed grants on faculty success.

He serves as a director on several boards, including the N.C. Agromedicine Institute, the Urban Serving Universities Coalition, the National Outreach Scholarship Consortium, Triangle Tomorrow and the Food Systems Leadership Institute. He also served on the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Research, Extension, Education and Economics Advisory Board.

A Wisconsin native, Zuiches earned a Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Prior to joining NC State, he was a faculty member and administrator at Michigan State University, Cornell University and Washington State University. He also served as a grant-making program officer for the National Science Foundation and W.K. Kellogg Foundation. He is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).