Yet another college is tapping Marian McCord’s expertise.
McCord, who holds joint appointments in the Department of Textile Engineering, Chemistry and Science in the College of Textiles and the Department of Biomedical Engineering in the College of Engineering, will join the College of Natural Resources Aug. 1 as associate dean for research.
Did we mention that she’s also director of the Global Health Initiative in the Office of International Affairs?
With her new position, McCord will hold academic rank in the Department of Forest Biomaterials.
Working Across Disciplines
In a career spanning two decades, McCord has built an interdisciplinary portfolio of research focused on improving human health and wellness through novel textiles that prevent and treat disease. And she’s an expert in assembling and leading multidisciplinary research teams.
Those are precisely the skills that the College of Natural Resources wants to leverage. Under the leadership of Dean Mary Watzin, CNR is moving to increase both internal and external research collaborations and to compete for high-impact research grants.
McCord says the focus on collaboration is sparking new thinking and new energy across campus, resulting in innovations like the Chancellor’s Faculty Excellence Program and the One Health initiative spearheaded by the College of Veterinary Medicine.
“More and more, interdisciplinary partnerships are bringing new perspectives to units and colleges,” she says. “Rather than thinking about the impact of our research on one particular discipline, we’re thinking about the broader impacts. Expertise in a core area is still important, but now we’re exploring how to use that expertise in concert with others to address complex problems that span disciplines.”
McCord says the College of Natural Resources is poised to take a leadership role in environmental health and sciences, specifically in addressing the grand challenges of food security, clean water and global health.
Watzin welcomed McCord to the college in an email message Wednesday: “Through her work, Marian has earned a national and international reputation for solving practical global health challenges. She will bring creativity, energy and a genuine appreciation of the power of collaboration to the College of Natural Resources.”
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