Departs UGA July 31
Long-time UGA College of Pharmacy faculty member Dr. Shelley Hooks, professor in the Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences Department and the Associate Vice President for Research at UGA, has accepted the position of Vice Chancellor of Research at the University of Kansas. Her final day at UGA will be July 31, and she will assume her new role in Kansas on August 4.
“Dr. Hooks has been pivotal in the growth and development of not only our Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences Department but in the overall research arena at the University of Georgia,” said Kelly Smith, Dean of the College of Pharmacy. “Her intellect and contributions to biomedical sciences have been extraordinary, and she will be sorely missed.”
She added, “We applaud Dr. Hooks on this excellent career trajectory and commend the University of Kansas for their selection of Dr. Hooks for this important role.”
Dr. Hooks joined the College of Pharmacy in 2004 as an assistant professor, and through the years rose through leadership ranks at the College and UGA. She served as the Interim Head for the Department of Pharmaceutical and Biomedical Sciences and the Interim Director of the UGA Center for Drug Discovery. Working as UGA’s Associate Vice President for Research since 2018, Dr. Hooks oversees internal grants, awards, and research personnel. In addition, she manages a portfolio of internal research funding programs and leads initiatives to support faculty, postdoctoral scholars, and other research personnel. She also directs the Office of Research’s strategic plan and serves as a liaison among the office, academic units, centers, institutes, and faculty.
Her research has focused on signaling mechanisms and novel therapeutic strategies for cancer and neurological diseases. Her research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the National Multiple Sclerosis Society, and the Marsha Rivkin Center for Ovarian Cancer Research, to name a few.
In her new role at the University of Kansas, Dr. Hooks will lead the research enterprise and oversee research administration.
“While I am thrilled to start a new adventure at the University of Kansas, I will miss the many colleagues here at the University of Georgia who have now become dear friends,” said Dr. Hooks. “I look forward to keeping in touch with everyone.”
