UMass Dartmouth appoints new provost, vice chancellor

DARTMOUTH – The University of Massachusetts Dartmouth has named Hanchen Huang as the university’s next provost and vice chancellor for academic affairs. 

Huang, who is dean of the College of Engineering at the University of North Texas, will start at UMass Dartmouth on July 18, replacing Ramprasad Balasubramanian, who served the position on an interim basis since January. 

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“Dr. Huang is not only an extremely accomplished researcher and educator, he is also deeply committed to providing opportunities to students from all backgrounds,” UMass Dartmouth Chancellor Mark A. Fuller said. “He has made a tremendous impact on the institutions where he served as a dean and department chair, and I am excited for him to join UMass Dartmouth as we continue to enhance the university’s national reputation and societal impact.” 

Huang earned a Ph.D. in nuclear engineering from UCLA, a bachelor of science in physics from Hebei Normal University in Shijiazhuang, China. He earned a master’s in theoretical nuclear physics from the Institute of Atomic Energy/Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing. Huang was a postdoctoral fellow in computational mechanics and materials at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory. 

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“I am honored and excited to join a research university with such a strong trajectory of success, which also serves a diverse student population,” said Huang. “I look forward to working with UMass Dartmouth’s exceptional faculty, staff and students in the months ahead.” 

UMass Dartmouth said that as dean of the College of Engineering and Lupe Murchison Foundation chairman professor at the University of North Texas, Huang increased the college’s enrollment, grew the number of full-time faculty positions, improved the college’s national rankings, led successful fundraising campaigns and expanded research activity.

Huang also previously served as a faculty member and department chairman of Mechanical & Industrial Engineering at Northeastern University in Boston, where he was instrumental in substantially growing enrollment, launching new, high-demand degree programs, while strengthening industry partnerships to enhance student outcomes through more experiential learning opportunities, according to UMass Dartmouth.