On May 11 President Johnsen announced that Paul Layer has been selected as vice president for academics, students, and research for the UA System. Vice President Layer has served in this role as the interim vice president since November 2017.

Vice President Layer is highly regarded for his many years as a faculty member at UAF. He’s a skilled leader with a passion for education, and he is a tremendous asset to the executive team as we work towards our goals of increasing enrollment and student achievement.

He will oversee a number of areas in the UA system, including academic affairs, corporate partnerships, student services, distance education, K-12 outreach, academic governance and academic and research initiatives. He will lead collaborative efforts in those areas with all UA campuses, state and federal agencies, and international entities.

Vice President Layer formerly was dean of the UAF College of Natural Science and Mathematics (CNSM), and began teaching at UAF in 1989 as an assistant professor in the Department of Geology and Geophysics and the Geophysical Institute. He led the Department of Geology and Geophysics from 1995 to 2003 and again in 2007. He has also been chair and is currently a member of the Alaska Geologic Mapping Advisory Board and the State of Alaska Department of Natural Resources Division of Geological and Geophysical Surveys.

At UAF, he was instrumental in developing a new life sciences building, increasing undergraduate enrollment in CNSM and starting a professional veterinary medicine program in cooperation with Colorado State University.

He received his Bachelor of Science in geology from Michigan State University and his Master of Science and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in geophysics from Stanford University. He spent three years as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Toronto’s Department of Physics.