Mark G. McNamee has been appointed dean of the Division of Biological Sciences at the University of California, Davis, a position he has held on an interim basis since mid-1993. McNamee's appointment, approved by UC President Jack W. Peltason, is effective immediately. As dean, McNamee, 48, is responsible for academic planning, budgetary operations and personnel administration within the Division of Biological Sciences, an intercollege unit that oversees academic programs in basic biology. The division administers seven undergraduate majors in biology enrolling more than 3,200 students and nine graduate groups of more than 350 students. UC Davis leads the country in the number of doctoral graduates in the biosciences. McNamee succeeds Robert D. Grey, who now serves as UC Davis' provost and executive vice chancellor. "As interim dean and past biochemistry chair, Mark has had an important learning experience that will serve us well in the development of the best possible teaching and research programs in biology, a critically important component of the Davis campus's academic enterprise," said Chancellor Larry N. Vanderhoef. "He meets, as well, the strongly stated need that came forward during the search process -- the need for campus experience in these times of transition. Provost Grey and I are convinced that, under his continued leadership, the division will surely flourish." An expert in the structure and function of biological membranes, McNamee received a bachelor's degree in chemistry from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1968 and a doctorate in chemistry from Stanford University in 1973. He served as a postdoctoral associate at Columbia University from 1973 until he joined the UC Davis faculty in 1975 as an assistant professor of biochemistry. He was promoted to associate professor in 1980 and to professor in 1985. He became chair of the Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics in 1990, serving until he was tapped in 1993 as interim dean of the Division of Biological Sciences. "We have a great collection of faculty, staff and students in the division and I am looking forward with enthusiasm to the new challenges ahead," McNamee said. "Biology is one of the great strengths of the Davis campus and I am convinced that the division and the broader biology community at UC Davis will continue to excel and become even stronger in research and teaching. I appreciate the support and trust of my colleagues, the chancellor and the president and am eager to forge ahead." The author of some 80 publications, McNamee is currently a member of the editorial board of the journal Cellular and Molecular Neurobiology and a manuscript referee for several other scholarly journals. He has reviewed National Science Foundation proposals for nearly 20 years and has served as a member of several National Institutes of Health (NIH) study sections. He was awarded a prestigious seven-year Javits Neuroscience Research Award by NIH in 1987. McNamee's professional society memberships include the Society for Neuroscience, Biophysical Society, American Society for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Sigma Xi honorary and the American Chemical Society. He has also served as president and member of the Davis Science Center Board of Directors and participated in numerous university task forces and committees.