Leadership in the Biological Sciences Department
| James D. Spain |
1962-1968 (Head) |
| John Slater |
1968-1970 (Head) |
| Robert C. Stones | 1970-1981 (Head) |
| Bertwell K. Whitten |
1981-1986 (Head) |
| Stephen H Bowen | 1986 to 1995 (Head) |
| John H. Adler | 1995-2009 (Chair) |
| K. Michael Gibson | 2009-2012 (Chair) |
| Chandrashekhar P. Joshi |
2012-2013 (Interim Chair) |
| Chandrashekhar P. Joshi |
2013-2023 (Chair) |
| Casey J. Huckins | 2023-present (Interim Chair) |
Learn More about the History
In October 1961, the Michigan Tech Board of Control approved the formation of a Department of Biological Sciences. The Department began independent operations on July 1, 1962, with five faculty drawn from other departments at Michigan Tech.
The narratives assembled and linked from this page describe some of the history of the department.
- Robert T. Brown, one of the original members of the department, wrote in 1973 a draft of the history of the department: Early history of the department
- James D. Spain, the founding department head of the department, has recently written an account of its establishment and first eight years: Early departmental history
- Jack C. Holland has written a brief narrative about the beginning of the department’s activities in Medical Technology- Clinical Lab Science: Account of development of clinical lab science
- Spain has written an extended narrative describing the beginning of the department’s research program in aquatic ecology in 1968, when he returned to doing research after his term as department head: Early aquatic research activities
- Spain has also contributed a personal narrative of the beginnings of the departmental program in computer simulation of biological phenomena: Early activities on computer simulation