University of Iowa names Lois Geist new associate provost for faculty
The UI named Lois Geist the new associate provost for faculty, effective Nov. 15 after serving the Carver College of Medicine for 16 years.
Susan McClellen
November 7, 2019
After working in the same position for 16 years, Lois Geist sees her new role in the Office of the Provost as a new challenge.
The University of Iowa has named Geist the new associate provost for faculty, succeeding Kevin Kregel after his promotion to vice provost and senior associate provost for faculty.
The selection committee had a number of good applicants for the position, but Geist was chosen for the position because of how long she has worked at the UI and her experience interacting with faculty in the College of Medicine, said Maria Lukas, deputy general counsel and committee member.
“The university is a big and complicated place, and it takes folks a while to understand how a lot of its processes work together,” Lukas said. “So, I think that her role in the College of Medicine over the years has certainly exposed her to many aspects of that.”
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Geist was previously the associate dean of faculty affairs and development in the Carver College of Medicine. She is also a professor of internal medicine.
She has been a physician at the UI since 1990 and served in her former position while still having an active clinical practice, Geist said.
She has already worked in an administrative position specifically focusing on faculty issues and understands the policies and procedures, promotions, and tenure, Geist said.
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In her former position, she was responsible for conducting department reviews and oversight of department chairs and professors, along with suggesting names for external leadership programs that the Office of the Provost oversees, she said.
There is a lot of overlap in the skills and responsibilities of her new and old position, she said, but now it will be on a larger scale. In the College of Medicine, Geist oversaw around 1,300 faculty members as associate dean but will begin overseeing more than two times as many people.
“I genuinely like interacting with the faculty, even when it’s done under difficult circumstances, because I think I can be helpful,” Geist said. “I’m a good listener, and I’ve been in the university system for a long time.”
Some of Geist’s new responsibilities will include working with the Division of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion to make sure faculty needs are met and directing the Departmental Executive Officer Leadership Development Program, Kevin Kregel, executive vice provost and senior associate provost for faculty, said in an email to *The Daily Iowan*.
Geist will take on her new role Nov. 15 after approval from the state Board of Regents.
She will also provide faculty and executive search committees with training, coaching, and resources, he said.
Having Geist in the position will provide the Provost’s Office with the opportunity to expand their efforts in supporting faculty, Kregel said.
“With Dr. Geist coming into this position, my hope is that we will continue to build on past successes and enhance our efforts in supporting faculty, students, and staff across campus,” Kregel said.
