Milavetz named Interim Chair of SMHS Department of Biomedical Sciences

Barry Milavetz, Ph.D., professor in the UND School of Medicine & Health Sciences (SMHS) Department of Biomedical Sciences, has been named Interim Chair of the Department.

Milavetz succeeds outgoing biomedical sciences chair Colin Combs, Ph.D., who is dividing his time between the SMHS, where he remains Senior Associate Dean for Research and tenured professor within the Department of Biomedical Sciences, and UND’s Office of Research and Economic Development, where he serves as UND’s Associate Vice President for Research and Economic Development.

“I am excited to join Dean Jenkins’s team and continue the direction that Dr. Combs established for the Department,” said Milavetz, who has served as UND’s Interim Vice President for Research and Economic Development and as Associate Vice President for Research.

SMHS Dean Marjorie Jenkins, M.D., M.Ed.H.P., F.A.C.P., selected Milavetz after a committee led by SMHS Associate Dean for Health Sciences, Dave Relling, P.T., Ph.D., considered several excellent internal applicants for the interim chair role.

“Dr. Milavetz’s qualifications, experience, and vision align well with our needs and objectives,” said Jenkins. “I am confident that his contributions will significantly enhance our institution’s success and I look forward to working with him.”

A widely published researcher who has been awarded more than $2 million in federal grants during his UND career, Milavetz earned an undergraduate degree from the University of Minnesota before earning a doctoral degree in bio-organic chemistry at the University of Illinois. After completing post-doctoral training at Roswell Park Memorial Institute in Buffalo, N.Y., he studied cancer at the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, before coming to UND in 1986.

Milavetz will guide the Department through its transitional period, working closely with faculty, staff, and students to maintain and advance the high standards of education, research, and service that define the School’s mission, said Jenkins. He will also help manage a soon-to-begin national search for a permanent chair of the Department of Biomedical Sciences.

“Thanks to Dr. Relling and all of the committee members for their thoughtful work in assisting with the selection of the final candidate,” Jenkins continued. “I also thank all the candidates and the many SMHS faculty and staff who provided valuable input to the search committee. It was a not an easy decision to make given that each candidate brought unique talents and an unwavering commitment to the SMHS and the Department of Biomedical Sciences.”

Milavetz will begin his new role in the largest research and education department within the SMHS on Wednesday, April 16.