A professor of Gerontology and former Graduate School dean with more than 20 years of experience at the University of Northern Colorado has been named provost and senior vice president.

Robbyn Wacker will make the transition immediately after serving as acting provost and senior vice president.

"I have great confidence that Robbyn is the right person to do this work at UNC," UNC President Kay Norton said.

"She has a remarkable ability to bring people from throughout the university together to work toward a common goal. She is a champion not only for respectful shared governance, but also for UNC and the transformative education we provide for students."

At UNC, Wacker also has served as assistant vice president for Research, Graduate and Extended Studies (2006-11), dean of UNC's College of Health and Human Sciences (2003-05), associate and assistant dean for the College of Health and Human Sciences (1996-2003) and a professor in the Gerontology program (1990-96). She earned bachelor's and master's degrees from UNC and a doctorate from Iowa State University.

"I'm honored to have the opportunity to work with a campus community of people who are dedicated to making a difference in students' lives, in our community and around the world," Wacker said. "UNC has a great future and I'm glad to be part of it."

Wacker, who has published numerous academic articles, is also co-author of "Aging Social Policies: An International Perspective," which covers how changing policies directly affect the lives of adults over the age of 65.