Leslie P. Tolbert, Ph.D., became the Vice President for Research, Graduate Studies, and Economic Development of the University of Arizona in 2005 and now is the Senior Vice President for Research. In this role, she provides infrastructure and support for the research and other scholarly activities of a $600M research enterprise, promotes technology transfer, and oversees and supports the graduate programs of the university. Tolbert places particular emphasis on cross-cutting, interdisciplinary activities, and promotes faculty diversity and success.

Dr. Tolbert received her undergraduate and Ph.D. degrees from Harvard University and obtained postdoctoral training at Harvard Medical School. She served on the faculty at Georgetown University’s School of Medicine before moving to the University of Arizona in 1987. She currently is a Regents’ Professor with appointments in the College of Science Department of Neuroscience and in the College of Medicine Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine. Her research group, funded for over 25 years by the National Institutes of Health, studies mechanisms underlying the critical role of sensory input in brain development.

Dr. Tolbert has served as president of the Association of Neuroscience Departments and Programs and of the Association for Chemoreception Sciences, and is a member of numerous boards including those of the Arizona Alzheimer’s Consortium, Arizona Technology Council, Campus Research Corporation, Downtown Tucson Partnership, Large Binocular Telescope, Southern Arizona Leadership Council, TREO, and Opening Minds Through the Arts. She also has served on numerous review and advisory panels of the National Science Foundation and National Institutes of Health.