WVU President Michael T. Benson has announced that Beverly Wendland will be the university’s next dean and vice president for academic affairs. Wendland is a seasoned scholar and academic leader coming to Morgantown from Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri.
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Following a national search focused on the academic future of West Virginia University, President Michael T. Benson announces the hiring of Beverly Wendland, an accomplished scholar and academic leader with extensive experience in higher education, to serve as Dean and university vice president for academic affairs.
“Beverly is a nationally recognized cell biologist who has served as a faculty member, department chair, provost and provost during her long career, which has also included direct work with major academic medical centers,” said President Benson.
“She will bring a scientific mind to the role of dean and vice president for academic affairs that will complement my work as historian. This balance will ensure that all academic disciplines – from STEM to the arts – are prioritized at the highest levels of leadership as we lead West Virginia University’s academic mission into a new and impactful era.”
Wendland most recently served as senior advisor to the chancellor at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, following a successful five-year tenure as dean and executive vice chancellor.
“Serving as dean of West Virginia University is a very significant opportunity to help advance a land-grant research institution at a pivotal moment in its historical arc,” Wendland said. “I look forward to collaborating with faculty, staff and students to leverage WVU’s strengths, support academic excellence across disciplines, and expand the university’s impact on West Virginia and the communities it serves.”
The Dean of the University administers all academic affairs, providing oversight of deans, academic programs, student support services, program development, faculty engagement and recruitment, academic budgets, institutional data, and accreditation.
Under Wendland’s leadership, Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) — a private research university — made significant progress in academic excellence, research innovation and community engagement while implementing a 10-year strategic plan that included the creation of the School of Public Health.
“Throughout my career, I have improved student learning while leveraging academic excellence for the public good,” Wendland said. “Strategic thinking allows higher education to evolve in ways that benefit everyone – from global discovery to locally anchored community impact. »
Before being hired at Washington University in St. Louis in 2020, Wendland served for five years as the James B. Knapp Dean of the Krieger School of Arts and Sciences at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.
She was previously a member of the Johns Hopkins faculty since 1998 and chaired the biology department from 2009 to 2014.
“Beverly’s overall involvement with Association of American Universities institutions will be particularly helpful as we work toward our goal of AAU membership,” said President Benson.
Wendland is a first-generation college graduate who earned a bachelor’s degree in bioengineering from the University of California, San Diego and a doctorate in neuroscience from Stanford University.
His research focuses on the molecular mechanisms of endocytosis using yeast as a model system and contributes to the understanding of heart disease, cancer and other health problems.
“I have long been fascinated by how cells organize and adapt at the molecular level to carry out their unique functions. Studying endocytosis in yeast allows us to uncover fundamental biological principles that have implications for human health and disease,” she said.
Wendland also served on the board of trustees of Barnes Jewish Hospital in St. Louis – the teaching hospital affiliated with the University of Washington School of Medicine – which US News & World Report ranked as the best hospital in Missouri.
The provost search committee — co-chaired by Diana Davis, former Faculty Senate chair and associate professor, WVU School of Medicine, and Evan Widders, associate provost for undergraduate education, WVU Office of the Provost — was supported by Greenwood Asher & Associates, a full-service search firm, to fill the position.
In addition to leading the University as dean and vice president for academic affairs, Wendland will be appointed professor in the biology department of the WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences.
She will engage regularly with the campus community during the first semester of 2026 as she prepares to officially join President Benson’s leadership team on July 1.
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