Dear Friends of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences:
 I am delighted to greet you from the Dean’s Office of the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences (CLAS)— or, as we call it around here, class.
Having begun my Wayne State career in the original College of Liberal Arts in the mid-1960s, it seems very natural and comfortable to do so, and I’m pleased to report that the merger of the Colleges of Liberal Arts, Science, and portions of the former College of Urban, Labor and Metropolitan Affairs is now official and functioning smoothly. Our expanded office is located on the second floor of Old Main. CLAS now includes 20 departments and well over 400 faculty members.
CLAS has a number of distinctions as the result of the merger, including being the provider of:
- the majority of the total undergraduate credit hours in the university
- the core learning experience throughout the university
- the requisite math and science for pre-professional undergraduates
- strong graduate education at Masters and PhD levels
- nearly half of the PhD degrees awarded in the university
Currently, the College has:
- Approximately $20 million/yr in external grants and contracts
- Several nationally-ranked departments (National Science Foundation and/or National Research Council rankings)
Our CLAS Board of Visitors, under the leadership of Randal Charlton, continues to be a great asset to the College. The 2008-2009 Board of Visitors is: Michael Acheson, Managing Director, Blue Water Capital; David E. Burnett, nanoScience Engineering Corporation; Randal Charlton, Interim Director, Tech Town; John G. Chupa, Attorney and Counselor, John Chupa and Associates P.C.; Elaine C. Driker, Founding Director (Retired), Detroit Orientation Institute; Dr. Fredric D. Frank, CEO, Talentkeepers, Inc.; Ronald E. Hall, President and CEO, Bridgewater Interiors; Iltefat Hamzavi, M.D.; Dr. Gary Hawkins, The Aerospace Corporation; George Hill, President, Diversified Chemical Technologies, Inc.; Dr. Carl R. Johnson, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Department of Chemistry, Wayne State University; Professor William Kaiser, Electrical Engineering Department, UCLA; Dr. Nalini M. Motwani, President, ApoLife, Inc.; Paul L. Nine, Paul L. Nine & Associates, P.C.; Stanford R. Ovshinsky, Chairman, Ovshinsky Innovation LLC; Doug Ross, Superintendent, University Preparatory Academy; Dr. Aleya Rouchdy; Dr. A. Paul Schaap; Dr. Ellen B. Stechel; Dr. Guy Stern, Distinguished Professor Emeritus, Department of German and Slavic Studies, Wayne State University; and C. Peter Theut, Global Trade Group.
Despite all the challenges presented by the current economic climate, the students and faculty of this college continue to excel, and Wayne State remains a magnificent resource for the citizens of our state. We all would be very pleased to have you visit our campus and witness this vitality in person, and I cordially invite you to do so.
With warm regards,
Robert L. Thomas
Dean
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