Benjamin C. Withers, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS), has announced three new leadership roles in LAS departments effective July 1.
Department of History
David Hollander, professor of history and director of the classical studies program, was selected as the new chair for the Department of History, for a five-year term. Hollander brings a distinguished research record and award-winning teaching to the role. He hopes to expand programs in the department and encourage more students to take advantage of high-impact learning experiences, such as study abroad programs curated by historians.
Hollander’s research covers the economic and agricultural history of late Republican and early Imperial Rome. He’s particularly interested in agriculture, foodways, coinage, money, credit, and debt. A recipient of the Cassling Family Faculty Award for Outstanding Teaching, he will encourage collaborative teaching and a flexible, adaptive approach to how the department structures learning.
Hollander wants to spotlight the history department’s successes, bolster support for faculty working toward tenure, and leverage program strengths to create a new chapter of successful teaching and scholarship. He will also emphasize student recruitment and retention.
“The history department has a long tradition of combining outstanding teaching with world-class research,” Hollander said. “I want to make sure that continues and to bring greater recognition to my amazing colleagues.”
Hollander earned his Ph.D. in ancient history from Columbia University. He is a member of the Society of Classical Studies, American Historical Association, and Association of Ancient Historians, among others.
Department of Statistics
Zhengyuan Zhu, professor of statistics, Kingland Fellow in Data Analytics, and director of the Center for Survey Statistics and Methodology (CSSM), was selected as the interim chair of the Department of Statistics by Benjamin C. Withers, dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, and Ruth MacDonald, acting dean of the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences.
For more than 10 years, Zhu has managed CSSM – an innovative collaboration in 1938 between the Statistical Laboratory and the U.S. Department of Agriculture. The Statistical Laboratory, established by George W. Snedecor at Iowa State in 1933, was the first center established in the United States to advance statistical research and application.
An elected fellow of the American Statistical Association and International Statistics Institute, Zhu has been honored with multiple outstanding research awards and earned one of the first prestigious LAS Dean’s Professorships.
Zhu’s research focuses on spatial statistics; survey statistics; machine learning; statistical data integration; and applications in environmental science, agriculture, remote sensing, and official statistics. His research reputation has earned support from high-profile federal funders like the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Agriculture, as well as the Iowa departments of Health and Human Services. Transportation, and Interior Bureau of Land Management.
Zhu’s service as director of CSSM and his extensive internal and external professional service roles have prepared him for his new role as interim department chair. From his service to the United Nations’ Food and Agriculture Organization Strategy to Iowa State’s High Performance Computing Advisory Committee, he consistently looks for opportunities for interdisciplinary growth.
“Our department’s greatest strengths are our outstanding people, collegial culture, and broad excellence in research and education,” Zhu said. “We also have a strong tradition of interdisciplinary research, with many faculty leading or participating in joint grants and collaborative projects across campus. I plan to build on these strengths by expanding collaborations in data-driven science and responsible AI, areas where statistics can play a central role in advancing research across disciplines.”
Zhu earned a Ph.D. in statistics from the University of Chicago. His term as interim chair will extend through June 30, 2027.
The Department of Statistics is co-administered by LAS and CALS. An announcement of the new CSSM director is forthcoming.
Department of World Languages and Cultures
Nell Gabiam, associate professor of anthropology and political science, will move from the role of senior associate chair of the Department of World Languages and Cultures to interim chair.
The range of Gabiam’s achievements are as diverse as the department. In addition to garnering support for her research from the National Science Foundation and the NYU Abu Dhabi Humanities Research Fellowship for the Study of the Arab World, she’s also been honored by the university, the college, and the community for outstanding achievement in teaching, exemplary service, and collaboration. She’s a champion of collaboration, from interdisciplinary research to partnering with multiple departments to create new programs, such as the Middle Eastern Studies minor.
Gabiam brings a unique blend of scholarship and multi-faceted leadership to a department that is primed for a new trajectory of success. Building on the work of her predecessors and the department’s work pursuing strategic actions, she aims to propel the work forward in “crafting strong, viable, and dynamic academic programs.”
In addition to improving student recruitment and retention, the department has increased student credit hours by rejuvenating courses. The end goal is to not only add value to courses and degrees, but to also enable faculty, staff, and students to articulate that value.
“I think that as we innovate, expand, and diversify our course offerings, we can be more explicit about the valuable skills and experiences – especially career-related ones – that students can gain by enrolling in the humanities and social science-centered courses and programs that WLC offers,” Gabiam said.
Gabiam’s research expertise covers five broad areas: Palestinian studies, migration and refugee studies, humanitarian and development studies, (trans)national belonging and governance, and peace and conflict studies. Her fieldwork extends from Palestinian refugee camps in Syria, to Europe and the Middle East, and more recently, to the Iowa communities where many people of refugee status reside.
Gabiam received her Ph.D. in cultural anthropology from the University of California Berkeley. She is a member of the American Anthropological Association, the Middle East Studies Association, and Palestinian American Research Center. Her interim role extends through June 30, 2027.