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Harvard University Dean of Science Christopher W. Stubbs discussed his decision to step down in an interview with The Crimson on Thursday and urged his successor to be wary of slow institutional change.
Stubbs, who has served as department chair since 2018, also spoke about his role as artificial intelligence advisor to Hopi E. Hoekstra, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, and the relationship between the biotechnology industry and academia.
The physics and astronomy professor, who announced his resignation as dean in November, said his “five-year term” was over and it was now “someone else’s turn.”
“It’s good for us to have turnover in this job,” Stubbs said.
Stubbs said leading the department through the COVID-19 pandemic was both his greatest accomplishment and his most difficult moment. He also highlighted the department’s efforts to listen to and respond to constituent needs during his tenure.
“We will ask each of the various stakeholders that make up our department, from undergraduates and graduate students to postdocs and faculty, to identify concrete ways to improve the lives of their respective groups. “We have tried to do so with varying degrees of success,” Stubbs said.
Despite his resignation, Stubbs plans to continue advising Hoekstra on artificial intelligence after he retires from his position as dean. In an interview Thursday, he said generative AI is a “tipping point” for universities.
Stubbs said the technology is “a great opportunity for us as an educational institution to learn how to use these tools to teach people, and to teach people how to use those tools in an ethical and responsible manner.” “It will be an opportunity,” he said.
“I think my role is to explain to the dean the rationale and motivation for making the changes we are making, present alternatives, and make recommendations as to which of those alternatives is most appropriate for us. ” he added.
Stubbs also addressed tensions between academia and the private sector, saying the appeal of working in the private sector is nothing new.
“I wouldn’t call this a trend,” Stubbs said. “I think we are much more competitive with other higher education institutions than we are with the private sector.”
“Once people decide that their path in life is to become an academic, and they go down that path, they tend to stay on that path,” he added. “We are losing far more people to peer institutions than we are to the private sector.”
Still, Stubbs acknowledged that some Harvard faculty members have left for private companies, including Stuart L. Shriver, a former professor of chemistry and chemical biology at Harvard. Mr. Schreiber left his position at the university and joined Arena Bioworks, a private biomedical research institute.
With Stubbs leaving the position at the end of the 2023-2024 school year, Hoekstra is searching for a successor, but that appointment is likely in the “next few months,” The Crimson reported last Wednesday. Hoekstra said in an interview.
Stubbs urged his successor to “actively reach out to different parts of our community,” but acknowledged that the university’s size could slow any kind of structural change.
“Harvard is a large, decentralized institution,” Stubbs said. “Be prepared for lengthy discussions that will lead to changes and decisions that will occur at a pace of their own choosing.”
—Staff writer Elizabeth Peng can be reached at elizabeth.peng@thecrimson.com.
—Staff writer Nicholas J. Frumkin can be reached at nicholas.frumkin@thecrimson.com.
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