Fuciarelli Appointed Asst. Vice President for Research and Dean ofGraduate School

VALDOSTA--Dr. Alfred Fuciarelli began his service as assistant vice president for research and dean of the Graduate School on July 1.

The newly created position incorporates leadership within the Graduate School and expanded responsibilities include advancing, promoting and increasing research activities at Valdosta State University.

“We wanted to expand the dean of the Graduate School position to include a focus on university-wide scholarship efforts,” said Provost Phil Gunter. “Last year, Valdosta State created a Quality Enhancement Plan to amplify its focus on providing greater opportunities for undergraduate students to conduct research and scholarly activities. The restructured position includes a greater emphasis on research and securing external funds for research projects.”

Fuciarelli said he was attracted to Valdosta State due to its overall approach to research and scholarly activities.

“I was extremely impressed with the commitment made by VSU through the Quality Enhancement Plan to engage undergraduate students in discipline-based research,” Fuciarelli said. “Creating opportunities to engage students in research, scholarly, and creative activities can be transformational for an undergraduate student, potentially igniting an interest in pursuing graduate training or better positioning them for professional programs or entering the workforce.”

Fuciarelli’s professional experience spans more than 20 years working in academic, government and contract research laboratories as a scientist, principal investigator, study director, program manager and associate department head.
Early in his career, Fuciarelli joined the Battelle Memorial Institute--the world’s largest nonprofit independent research and development organization--where his responsibilities included providing scientific and technical leadership for research studies, managing a portfolio of projects with an annual business volume of more than $1.5 million, and assisting with the presentation of research outcomes.

In 2004, he joined the Department of Environmental and Radiological Health Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Colorado State University (CSU) as associate department head. In 2009, Fuciarelli became director of critical initiatives at CSU, where he provided leadership for facilities program plan development across the College, participated in needs assessments, wrote proposals, participated in fund-raising activities, facility design/renovation, equipment selection/evaluation, vendor negotiations, procurement/contracts, and overall project management.

Fuciarelli received a Bachelor of Science in biology from the University of Toronto, a Master of Science in experimental radiology and a Doctor of Philosophy in medical sciences from the University of Alberta.

Contact Fuciarelli at affuciarelli@valdosta.edu or 229-333-5694.