Dr. Robert Dundas will serve as interim dean of the College of Science and Mathematics as a nationwide search continues for a permanent dean, Fresno State Provost Lynnette Zelezny announced.
Dundas has been the college’s Interim Associate Dean since January 2015. He joined the Fresno State faculty in 1998 as a lecturer, teaching in both the Departments of Biology and Geology. He moved into a tenure-track position in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, rising to the rank of professor.
“Dr. Dundas is highly respected by the faculty and staff,” said Zelezny, the University’s chief academic officer. “He will bring significant breadth in institutional knowledge and leadership continuity to the college.”
He has served in leadership roles within the University and community. In addition to numerous committees at the department, college and university level, he has chaired the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences. He has also served on the Madera County Board of Supervisors’ Paleontology Oversight Committee.
Dundas earned his bachelor’s degree in Geology from the University of Montana in 1988 and his Ph.D. in Paleontology from the University of California at Berkeley in 1994. He also completed the Management Development Program at Harvard University in 2015, designed for individuals in higher education leadership positions.
He has published widely in paleontology, focusing on the study of ice age mammals of North America. During his time at Fresno State, he has brought in $1.8 million in grant and contract funding, with a particular emphasis on support for students to cover field work, museum collections-based research and bench science.
A strong proponent of student involvement in research, he developed a vibrant research program in paleontology at Fresno State, involving students at the undergraduate and graduate level. This program has led to student/faculty co-authored publications and professional presentations, as well as students moving on to Ph.D. programs in the discipline following their graduation from Fresno State.
