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CORVALLIS, Ore. — A longtime academic leader in agricultural research in Oregon and around the United States has been named interim dean of the Oregon State University College of Agricultural Sciences and interim director of Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station. The College of Agricultural Sciences is OSU’s most productive research division and one of the nation’s top-ranked such colleges.

Bill Boggess, who has served as executive associate dean of the college since last year and associate dean since 2005, assumes leadership of the college on July 1, taking over from Thayne Dutson, who is retiring this summer after 15 years as dean.

In addition to his service to the college, Boggess served as president of the OSU Faculty Senate in 2006 and chaired the OSU Budget Committee from 2003-04, among many other appointments. He has also been a member of the OSU President’s Cabinet and Athletics Advisory Committee and a member of the Oregon Governor’s Council of Economic Advisors.

“Bill brings a depth of administrative and academic experience, both from his work at OSU and from his previous faculty positions at the University of Florida and University of Iowa, to this position,” said Provost and Executive Vice President Sabah Randhawa. “We’re grateful to be able to draw upon Bill’s knowledge and experience during this transitional period, as we look for a new permanent leader for Agricultural Sciences.”

The College of Agricultural Sciences is a significant academic enterprise, with about 1,600 students and an annual budget of approximately more than $85 million, nearly three-quarters of which comes from research contracts and grants. It employees the full-time equivalent of nearly 1,000 employees. Oregon Agricultural Experiment Station is operated under auspices of the college, and the college is responsible for roughly half of all programming within the OSU Extension Service.

Science Watch reported in 2006 that the college is ranked number one in the nation among the top 100 federally funded U.S. universities in agricultural sciences for “citation impact of published research” in the field. Science Watch described that list as showing universities whose research papers attracted citations at a rate notably above the world average over the past five years. The college ranks ninth globally in citation impact in agricultural sciences for the 10-year period from January 1996 to February 2006.

Agricultural Resource Economics, which Boggess led as department head from 1995-2005, was ranked seventh nationally in 2007 in listings produced by The Chronicle of Higher Education and Academic Analytics.