Dear Campus Community,
It is with great pleasure that I announce the appointment of Hazel Sive, PhD, as the dean of the College of Science & Mathematics and Professor of Biology effective August 18, 2025. I am fully confident that we will benefit hugely from Dr. Sive’s proven record of transformational leadership and scholarly achievement.
Dr. Sive joins us from Northeastern University where she has served as Dean of the College of Science since 2020. For twenty-eight years prior, she was Professor of Biology at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), Member of the Whitehead Institute, and Associate Member of the Broad Institute. A native of South Africa, Dr. Sive received the B.Sc. from the University of Witwatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa and the Ph.D. from Rockefeller University, New York.
Dr. Sive’s groundbreaking research focuses on neurodevelopmental disorders, as well as fundamental processes underlying brain and craniofacial development. She is a distinguished educator, a MacVicar Faculty Fellow, MIT’s highest teaching accolade and twice winner of the prestigious School of Science Teaching Award. An accomplished leader, Dr. Sive was Associate Dean for the MIT School of Science; Founding Director of the MIT Jameel World Higher Education Lab; and Founding Director of the MIT-Africa Initiative. At Northeastern, Dr. Sive is Chair of the new Africa Global Initiative. Among other accolades, in 2022, Dr. Sive was elected a Fellow of the American Association for Advancement of Science.
As Dean of Science at Northeastern University, Dr. Sive has promoted excellence through innovation in science research and education, amidst an overarching culture of belonging and respect. She has promoted a framework of the Good Power of Science that commits to ethical, responsible research and to communicating the essential contributions science research makes to everyone, every day. Dr. Sive is a collaborative and inclusive leader, with impressive outcomes in all goals proposed. The College of Science Strategic Plan CONNECTIONS to the Future was written and is being implemented by college members under Dean Sive’s leadership.
Dr. Sive has had a long-term commitment to public higher education, tracing back to her educational roots at Wits University, South Africa. She is honored and excited to join the outstanding University of Massachusetts system, and UMass Boston as Dean of the College of Science and Mathematics.
I am sincerely grateful to the search committee comprised of UMB faculty, staff, students, and administrators. Their dedication in recruiting and attracting an impressive national pool of highly qualified and diverse candidates for this important leadership position is both exceptional and commendable. I am appreciative to the committee chair Dean Bo Fernhall, along with vice-chair Professor Rachel Skvirsky, who provided skillful leadership in conducting this search process.
Finally, I also would like to express my deep appreciation and profound gratitude to Dr. Ricardo Castano-Bernard for his exemplary leadership while serving as interim dean for the past year.
Dr. Sive will be a tremendous asset to the College and to our entire university. Please join me in welcoming Dr. Hazel Sive to her new role as dean of the College of Science & Mathematics at UMass Boston.
Sincerely,
Joseph B. Berger,
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs
