ACADEMIA

Eric J. Barron, the director of the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), will step down from his position to assume the presidency of Florida State University. An alumnus of FSU, Barron was selected yesterday by its Board of Trustees to lead the university.

"In his brief tenure at NCAR, Eric has made a large positive impact," says Richard Anthes, the president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research (UCAR), which manages NCAR for the National Science Foundation. "He has begun a number of significant initiatives that will continue to guide the future of this organization at a critical time for weather and climate research. We are sorry to lose him, but thank him for the thoughtful leadership and ability to build consensus that will also serve him well in the leadership position at Florida State."

"While it is difficult to leave NCAR, I am extremely gratified and honored to return to my alma mater and serve as its next president," Barron says. "Florida State is an outstanding university that is poised to become one of the finest in the world."

Barron took over as NCAR director in July 2008. He came from the University of Texas-Austin, where he was dean of the Jackson School of Geosciences and held the Jackson Chair in Earth System Science. Previously he served as dean of the College of Earth and Mineral Sciences and professor of geosciences at Pennsylvania State University, and prior to that he served as an associate professor at the University of Miami.

Barron has chaired numerous National Science Foundation, NASA, and National Research Council committees and panels, including the NRC Climate Research Committee, the NRC Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate, and NASA's Earth Observing System Science Executive Committee. Throughout his career, he has had extensive ties with NCAR, ranging from student visitor to staff scientist, university collaborator, and chair of the UCAR Board of Trustees.

Barron received a B.S. in geology from Florida State University in 1973. He has a master's degree and Ph.D. in oceanography from the University of Miami.

The University Corporation for Atmospheric Research manages the National Center for Atmospheric Research under sponsorship by the National Science Foundation. Any opinions, findings and conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.