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Lon Kaufman

Vice Provost for Planning and Programs

University of Illinois at Chicago

Lon Kaufman is the Vice Provost for Planning and Programs. He is a Professor of Biological Sciences and served as the Head of UIC's Department of Biological Sciences from 1998 until accepting his current position as dean and vice provost.

Prof. Kaufman came to UIC in 1985 as an Assistant Professor after completing postdoctoral work at the Carnegie Institution of Washington's Department of Plant Biology in Stanford, California.

He was promoted to Associate Professor of Biological Sciences in 1990 and served as the Director of Graduate Studies from 1993 to 1996. He became a full Professor in 1995, before also assuming the headship of the department in 1998. Since 1998, he has also held a position as Adjunct Professor of Bioengineering.

Prof. Kaufman was named the Richard G. and Carole J. Cline University Scholar in 1994 and was a CIC-ALP Fellow in 1996. His research on the regulation of gene expression during early leaf development has received continuous federal funding since his arrival at UIC. He served on the editorial board of Journal of Plant Physiology from 1991-1993 , as the President of the Midwest Society of Plant Physiologists in 1996, and as Panel Director for the Plant Growth and Development Program at USDA in 1999.

Prof. Kaufman has served as an Honors College Fellow since 1992. He was a member of the Honors Council from 1994-1996 and for a second term from 2000 until he assumed his current position as dean. He has continually dedicated his career to fostering excellence in both undergraduate and graduate education at UIC through teaching, providing research opportunities, and serving on a wide range of committees and projects across the campus.

In addition, he employs at least one undergraduate as well as graduate and post-doctoral students in his lab in order to expose students to hands on research.