George Dambach has been named interim vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School, said President Irvin D. Reid in an Oct. 6 memo.

He comes to the post from the School of Medicine, where he was associate dean for research and graduate studies since 1991. He recently had been named deputy dean in addition to those duties.

From 1980 to 1991 he held the positions of assistant dean for research and graduate programs; director of graduate programs; and assistant dean for curricular affairs, all in the School of Medicine.

Dr. Dambach came to WSU in 1974 as an associate professor of pharmacology. He holds a bachelor's degree in physiology (1964) and a doctoral degree in pharmacology (1968), both from Ohio State University.

Dambach takes over for Dan Walz, who resigned Oct. 2 and will take a one-year administrative leave before returning to teaching and research.

"Dan has much to be proud of during his tenure as associate and vice president," Reid said. "Among his many accomplishments, Dan coordinated faculty hiring and initial start-up investments in new faculty with the division of Academic Affairs, initiated a career revitalization program in the College of Liberal Arts and positioned the division to move to electronic grant applications.

"Thanks to his guidance the division is poised to address the demands and challenges of the next century."