| About Dr. Smith:
Judith L. Smith earned her bachelor's degree at
UCSB (1964) and her doctoral degree at the University of Wisconsin (1969).
Her academic journey at UCLA began in the fall of 1969 as an Assistant
Professor in Physiological Science. Early in her career, Professor Smith was
recognized for innovative teaching, and in 1973, she received a UCLA
Distinguished Teaching Award.
Professor Smith served as Chair of her Department for five years (1980-85)
and was one of the founders of the undergraduate Neuroscience major
(established in 1991). NIH continuously funded her research on spinal cord
physiology and limb dynamics for 26 years (1971-97) and published over 80
research articles. In 1990, she received a Jacob Javits Neuroscience
Research Award for her contributions to the field of neuromotor control.
Professor Smith was elected and served as the Chair (Chair-Elect & Past
Chair) of UCLA's Academic Senate from 1993-95.
In fall 1996, she was appointed as the first Vice Provost for Undergraduate
Education in the College of Letters and Science; in this post, she is
responsible for the Division of Honors and Undergraduate Programs (HUP).
During her tenure as Vice Provost, Professor Smith has been responsible for
initiating several innovative programs for UCLA undergraduates, including:
GE Clusters for freshmen; two Centers for Undergraduate Research that
promote student research; a new writing-across-the curriculum program,
(Writing II); new programs for service learning; and two new scholarship
programs, one for students committed to careers in math and science
education and one for students committed to completing a honors research
project.
Currently Vice Provost Smith is responsible for implementing the College's
new GE program and UCLA's Fiat Lux program of one-unit freshman seminars;
both will be inaugurated in 2002-03. |
