Prof. Alan Tully has been appointed dean of Arts pro tem, effective Aug. 1. The former head of History, Tully was previously associate dean of Arts, External Affairs.

"It is an exciting time for the faculty which is moving in new directions," says Tully.

In the coming year the faculty will be developing existing initiatives such as extending co-operative education, preparing for the introduction of the new social sciences/humanities based Foundations Program, and implementing the recently adopted Arts academic plan.

Arts is UBC's largest faculty with an enrolment of more than 9,000 undergraduate and 1,000 graduate students.

The search for a permanent dean of Arts is underway. Former dean of Arts Shirley Neuman resigned earlier this year to accept a position as dean of the College of Literature, Science and the Arts at the University of Michigan.

Language Education Assoc. Prof. Patricia Duff has been chosen a National Academy of Education/Spencer Post-Doctoral Fellow.

Duff was among 33 fellows chosen from more than 200 outstanding scholars in education. Her research will examine language use in high school social studies classes with large numbers of ESL students.

The National Academy of Education is an honorary education society. The fellowships are intended to enhance the future of research in education by developing new talent in the many branches of education in the U.S., Canada and internationally.

Zoology Prof. Dolph Schluter was recently elected a fellow of the Royal Society of London.

Schluter's research has revealed the environmental conditions promoting both the origin of new species and their ecological divergence.

Currently a scholar in residence at the Peter Wall Institute of Advanced Studies, his numerous academic distinctions include an E.W.R. Steacie Memorial Fellowship in 1993 and the Faculty of Science's Charles A. McDowell Award for Excellence in Research in 1995.

Founded in 1660, the Royal Society is the independent scientific academy of the United Kingdom and is dedicated to promoting excellence in science. A maximum of 40 new fellows may be elected annually.

Freda Pagani has received a Minister's Environmental Award from the provincial Ministry of Environment, Lands and Parks in the category of environmental education.

As the director, Sustainability, for Land and Building Services at UBC, Pagani co-ordinates academic and operational initiatives to fulfil the university's sustainable development policy. The policy includes reducing material and energy consumption and increasing ecological literacy among faculty, staff and students.

Among Pagani's significant accomplishments was spearheading the design and construction of the C.K. Choi Building, which has won numerous awards for environmental innovation.

Joseph Jones, Humanities and Social Sciences reference librarian at Koerner Library, has been awarded a National Endowment for the Humanities grant for the third time.

Jones will join literature and religious studies professors at Yale University for a summer seminar on literary critical approaches to biblical narratives entitled "The Twentieth Century Bible: Death and Return of the Author."