3 women named to Pitt posts of engineering dean, education dean, head of student affairs

Michele V. Manuel has been named the first women dean at the University of Pittsburgh Swanson School of Engineering, while Eboni Zamani-Gallaher likewise was named dean of the Pitt School of Education and Carla Panzella the vice provost for student affairs, university officials announced.

Manuel, a leading materials engineer, innovator and leader, was announced this week as the new U.S. Steel Dean.

“Michele is a transformational and award-winning scholar and educator,” Provost and Senior Vice Chancellor Joseph McCarthy said. “Michele’s outstanding higher education and industry experience uniquely position her to lead the Swanson School forward.”

Manuel has served as chair of the Department of Materials Science and Engineering and the Nuclear Engineering program at the University of Florida since 2017 and is the Rolf E. Hummel Professor of Electronic Materials. During her tenure as chair, she established new positions and programs, leading the recruitment of 20 faculty members and turning the department into one of the largest and most diverse of its kind in the U.S.

She has been awarded the Howard Hughes Medical Institute Distinguished Mentor Award, the ASM (formerly American Society of Metals) Bradley Stoughton Award for Young Teachers, and the American Vacuum Society Recognition for Excellence in Leadership, among other honors. Manuel earned her PhD in materials science and engineering from Northwestern University and a bachelor’s degree from the University of Florida.

Zamani-Gallaher, the Renée and Richard Goldman Dean and Professor, and Panzella served in those roles previously on an interim capacity. Panzella’s hire was announced this week and Zamani-Gallaher’s earlier in May.

An accomplished scholar, Zamani-Gallaher’s work focuses on equitable participation in higher education; transfer, access, and retention policies; minoritized student populations in marginalized institutional contexts; and racial equity and campus climate in postsecondary education pathways.  As a researcher, Zamani-Gallaher has amassed nearly $10.5 million in external funding on projects aimed at improving the field of higher education. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, National Science Foundation and Alfred P. Sloan Foundation are among the organizations to fund her research.

She earned her doctorate in educational organization and leadership from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign College of Education, where she was a professor and served for years as a director, associate head and associate dean in various education policy, research, graduate and leadership areas.

“Eboni’s exceptional experience and expertise — and her demonstrated and deep dedication to the mission-vision of the School of Education and the work of its faculty, students, staff and alumni — make her the ideal choice for charting the course for the school’s next chapter,” McCarthy said.

Panzella, previously the dean of students and associate vice provost at Pitt, has been integral in implementing a reorganization across Student Affairs, and in collecting and analyzing data to provide a holistic understand of the student experience. She holds a PhD from Seton Hall, an MA from the Teachers College of Columbia University and a BS from Saint Peter’s. Prior to joining Pitt, she served as associate vice president for student life and dean of students at Salem State and, before that, held a similar role at Saint Peter’s.

“I believe that Carla’s leadership in this role will continue to be just what is needed for Student Affairs as they continue to build a vibrant, nurturing and inclusive environment for students at Pitt, and as she carries on her strong commitment to championing student engagement in shared governance,” McCarthy said.

# # #