The School of Molecular Biosciences was formed in 1999 from the Departments of Biochemistry/Biophysics and Microbiology and the Program in Genetics and Cell Biology. The rationale for this change was to reduce the number of small departments and programs and increase academic efficiency and faculty interactions. While each of these former units had some unique aspects, it was clear at that time that the basis of all of these disciplines was merging into similar molecular constants. The School has been very successful in research productivity and has become a major factor in undergraduate education at WSU. We established a very successful graduate training program and many of our former students are now internationally recognized in their disciplines. The 2018-2019 academic year is our 20thyear and we could continue as we have done for those two decades. However, research priorities, teaching methods and financial constraints are continually changing, and we must be ready to adapt and to provide leadership in a new environment. So, in the next year we will examine our many successes and important challenges with the goal of meeting the needs of the university and the students for the next 20 years. Our undergraduate enrollment is high and excellence in the programs we offer remains a major School priority. We have been able to recruit outstanding graduate students and several new research grants were awarded in the past few months to current faculty members. We have an outstanding group of young faculty members who are looking forward to success in the careers. We invite all of our current faculty, staff and students as well as those that are new to WSU and SMB to participate and help us to design our future.
Michael D. Griswold, Regents Professor and Director
