Adam Leibovich, the new Bettye J. and Ralph E. Bailey Dean of the Kenneth P. Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences and the College of General Studies (CGS), is as curious as he is energetic. And that’s saying a lot, because he brings an impressive level of tireless enthusiasm to everything he does. Whether he’s talking with prospective Dietrich School undergraduates about what they can expect from an intro to physics course or helping early career faculty members navigate the promotion and tenure process, Leibovich is fully present and engaged. That “presence” reflects both his genuine interest in other people and their success, and his passion for learning.
Says Leibovich, “I’ve always loved learning. Clearly, I enjoy learning physics, but my interests are broader than that. I’m fascinated by the sciences, but I also enjoy literature and the arts. I’m an avid reader of everything from science fiction to history to mythology. That love of learning is part of why I entered administration, so I could learn more about the research people are doing, first in my home department and then in the school. Now I get to continue that process on an even larger scale.”
Leibovich, who officially began his deanship on July 1, received his undergraduate degree in physics magna cum laude from Cornell University in 1992 and his doctorate in theoretical physics from California Institute of Technology in 1997. From 1997 to 2000 he was a postdoctoral fellow at Carnegie Mellon University and from 2000-2002 a postdoctoral research fellow at the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab). In 2003 he joined the faculty of the Dietrich School’s Department of Physics and Astronomy as an assistant professor. He became the department chair in 2015 and an associate dean in 2017, a role he held until becoming dean. In 2022, Leibovich was named director of the Pittsburgh Quantum Institute (PQI), a collaborative interdisciplinary organization that advances research, education, and training in quantum science and engineering.
Earlier this summer, Leibovich sat down with Snapshot for a wide-ranging conversation that included the books on his nightstand, his upcoming "listening tour" of academic departments, and why he is more optimistic than ever about the future of the Dietrich School and CGS.
SNAPSHOT: You’ve been at the University of Pittsburgh for 20 years and served as a department chair, associate dean, and director of PQI. Why did you want to be dean?
DEAN LEIBOVICH: This is an incredibly dynamic time in the life of the University of Pittsburgh with our new chancellor, Joan Gabel, starting this summer. There’s a lot of momentum and excitement and an open invitation for innovation and creativity. That’s very appealing. On top of that, having a chance to bring to this new role everything I have learned here over the past two decades—my own experiences as well as what other faculty, our alumni, students, and staff have shared with me—is unbelievably gratifying. It’s like coming full circle and I’m really looking forward to what comes next.
What can we expect in your first few months as dean?
Visibility and accessibility. It’s important to me to not be “The Dean” hidden away in an office, but to be out and about, so people know who I am and what I’m trying to accomplish. I want people to know what I’m thinking, where I’m coming from, and be able to ask me questions. As part of that, in the fall, our leadership team will conduct a listening tour, visiting our departments to hear more about what they’re doing and how the dean’s office can support them. I’ll also be holding monthly office hours so faculty, staff, and students can engage with me, one-on-one, even if it’s just to say hi.
The Dietrich School is the liberal arts core of the University of Pittsburgh. Why is a liberal arts education relevant?
A college education—and, in particular, a liberal arts education—is still the best way to get a good job and have a good career. The skills that you learn in a broad, liberal arts education are all the skills that you need to be successful in whatever career you choose, and they’re the skills that employers are looking for—they want to be sure that you can speak, that you can write, and that you can think in a critical manner. And these are the skills that we give all of our students.
As part of your leadership team, you’ve added responsibility for equity, diversity, and inclusion and community engagement to a new associate dean role. Why was this a priority for you?
Increasing the diversity among our faculty is a top priority. Everyone benefits from having a broad range of voices and perspectives around the table when we’re making plans and decisions. And it’s important for all of our students to see people who look like them in front of our classrooms, in our labs, and in our studios. One step we’re taking is creating the new associate dean position focused on equity, diversity, and inclusiveness. This person will be specifically focused on faculty recruitment and retention, advising and mentoring our chairs, directors, and other leaders; and, critically, community engagement.
What’s one of the important lessons you learned as associate dean for research and faculty development that you’ll bring with you to this new position?
Be open and honest in your communication with the faculty and staff you’re working with. Establish trust. When people understand where you’re coming from and know that you’re acting in good faith, even when I’ve had to say no to something they’re interested in, they understand the reason behind it. I plan to continue that as dean.
You’re a past recipient of the school’s highest teaching honor, the Bellet Teaching Excellence Award, which recognizes outstanding undergraduate teaching. As a department chair and associate dean in the Dietrich School, you’ve continued to teach. Why was that important to you?
From the time I was an undergraduate, working at a walk-in tutoring service, and then as a TA in graduate school, I really loved the experience of helping students advance in their understanding. When you can help a student learn something new, it’s the most amazing feeling. Teaching isn’t something I knew I was going to like when I started in academics, but I really love it. Every time I’ve taught a class, I learn something new, I hope the students learn something new, and it’s incredible. I’m not sure how soon I’ll be able to get back to the classroom, but I hope I can find a way to make that happen.
What’s special about Dietrich School and CGS students?
Our students are absolutely incredible. I’ve had the opportunity to teach them, to advise them, to be on committees selecting award winners, and the amount of interesting course work they are doing—double majoring, triple majoring, majoring with two minors and a certificate—it’s amazing. I can’t imagine doing that when I was in college. And on top of that, they’re doing unbelievable extracurricular activities, whether that’s research or volunteering at the hospital—all sorts of interesting projects. I’ve had the good fortune to be on the Goldwater Scholarship selection committee the past few years, and it always blows me away what our students are doing.
Given some of the challenges that higher education faces—including the demographic cliff, meaning that we’ll soon see a steep drop-off in the population of prospective first-year students and highly competitive job markets for both faculty and staff, making it tougher to recruit and retain—what makes you optimistic?
The strength of the community here at Pitt and in the Dietrich School and CGS. Our faculty, staff and students and the incredible things they’re doing every day. Any school can say they have talented faculty, dedicated staff, and high-achieving students. But what we have here is truly something special. Our people genuinely care about each other and our students. They take enormous pride in their work and in the University’s reputation. It’s personal for them. And when you see that kind of commitment, when you’ve got folks who are all in, the sky is the limit.
One last question. You have famously eclectic reading tastes. How do you select books and what’s on your nightstand right now?
I’m typically reading a fun fiction book, a fun non-fiction book, and at the same time I’m listening to an audio book, which is usually a classic of some sort. I just finished "Nonviolent Communication" by Marshall Rosenberg and I’m about to start "Consider the Fork" by Bee Wilson, which is a history of cooking and cutlery. My fun book that I’m in the middle of right now is "Ubik" by Philip K. Dick—I really like science fiction and it’s probably one of the reasons I went into physics—and the audio book I’m listening to is "The Picture of Dorian Gray" by Oscar Wilde.