UNIVERSITY OF RICHMOND APPOINTS JUNE R. APRILLE AS PROVOST
May 8, 2001
June R. Aprille, vice provost of Tufts University and a nationally recognized cell biologist, has been named provost of the University of Richmond. In addition to serving as vice provost at Tufts, she is the Henry Bromfield Pearson Professor of Natural Sciences and is an adjunct professor of pediatrics at Tufts' School of Medicine.
Aprille's appointment concludes a nationwide search for a new chief academic administrator at Richmond that began last December and attracted more than 200 candidates. Her extensive teaching, research and administrative experience is seen as a key asset for realization of Richmond's current strategic plan.
"Dr. Aprille brings to Richmond an exceptional record of achievement and will help orchestrate the creative learning environment by maintaining our focus on student-centered programs and by developing a number of initiatives embodied in our strategic plan," University President William E. Cooper said.
Aprille earned her bachelor's degree in zoology from Washington State University and holds master's and doctoral degrees in physiology from the University of Illinois. At Tufts, she has led major initiatives for student-faculty research, and she continues to teach undergraduate and graduate courses.
"The University of Richmond has a wonderful combination of academically-talented students and a faculty that is dedicated to the integration of excellent teaching and outstanding research," Aprille said. "There is tremendous potential here for the further development of a superior educational experience that is based on interaction between students and faculty at the highest intellectual level. I look forward to the challenge of helping to make that lofty ambition a reality."
Aprille's own research area is cellular physiology, with specific focus on the role of mitochondria in cellular energy metabolism. She is known for her work on human mitochondrial diseases and on mitochondrial function in a variety of biological systems. Her research has been supported by major grants from the National Institutes of Health and other agencies and foundations. She has published numerous research reports in leading journals and has served on several national boards and review panels.
As vice provost at Tufts, Aprille has developed and managed several cross-school, interdisciplinary theme initiatives, such as Tufts Institute of the Environment, the Ross Initiative on Healthy Aging and the Center for Children. Her newest initiatives are in bioethics, genetics, digital libraries and geographic information systems.
Aprille is a reviewing editor of two scholarly journals, the Journal of Bioenergetics and Biomembranes and the Archives of Pharmacal Research, and she serves on the scientific advisory board of the National Reyes Syndrome Foundation. Among her many other professional activities, she holds membership in the National Council for Undergraduate Research, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, American Society for Cell Biology, Society for Pediatric Research and the Biophysical Society.