Kostecki appointed vice provost for Research

Paul Kostecki, interim vice provost for research since 2003, has been chosen to fill the post permanently following a national search. The announcement was made by Charlena Seymour, provost and senior vice chancellor for Academic Affairs.

“I am pleased that Paul will continue in his role as vice provost,” said Seymour. “His leadership over the past three years has helped UMass Amherst expand the scope and quality of its research efforts and strengthen the campus’s ties with its partners in the public and private sectors.”

“The campus is fortunate to have Paul Kostecki’s commitment and expertise in continuing to develop and expand our support for the research activities that define UMass Amherst among America’s top public research institutions,” said Chancellor John V. Lombardi. “The challenges in this competitive environment are substantial, and our faculty, students and staff require the kind of exceptional management and effective organization that Vice Provost Kostecki can provide.”

“This is an exciting time to be affiliated with UMass Amherst at any level,” Kostecki said. “I look forward to continuing my work with the administration to encourage and support the outstanding scholarly and scientific studies that keep UMass Amherst at the forefront of national research efforts.”

As vice provost, Kostecki oversees all research-related activities on campus, including Commercial Ventures and Intellectual Property; Grant and Contract Administration; Research Affairs, Research Liaison and Development, campus institutes and centers; Animal Care facilities; the Microanalysis Laboratory, and the University of Massachusetts Press.

A faculty member in the Environmental Health Sciences Program since 1992, Kostecki studies environmental and public health effects of contaminated soils, aquatic toxicology, fish contamination and fish cancers. He is also an adjunct professor in Plant, Soil and Insect Sciences, and associate director of environmental research at the campus-based Northeast Regional Environmental Public Health Center.

Kostecki came to campus in 1980 as a postdoctoral research associate in the Department of Forestry and Wildlife, where he was promoted to senior research associate two years later. From 1985-92, he was a senior research associate in the Environmental Health Sciences Program and also served as managing director of the Council for Health and Environmental Safety of Soils from 1988-93.

May 18, 2006.

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