Cynthia Y. Young, Ph.D., has been named the new Vice Provost for Faculty Excellence and International Affairs and Global Strategies.
This new, combined role was a result of how closely these two areas have worked together after the reorganization of Academic Affairs last year. Responsible for not only leading strategic initiatives for recruitment, development and retention of faculty who will raise UCF’s global profile, Young also is charged with building partnerships across campus and the world that will strengthen the internationalization of UCF’s campus, curricula and research.
Dual roles are not new to Young. Throughout her academic career, she has held multiple concurrent appointments with the utmost success. Young has been serving as the Interim Vice Provost for Faculty Excellence and International Affairs and Global Strategies since late March 2015. Prior to that, she has served as an associate dean in the College of Sciences, UCF’s NCAA Faculty Athletics Representative and as the co-director of UCF’s EXCEL program.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in mathematics education from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; two master’s degrees – one in mathematical science and another in electrical engineering – from the University of Central Florida and the University of Washington, respectively; and a Ph.D. in applied mathematics from the University of Washington. She joined UCF in 1997 as a tenure-track assistant professor of mathematics.
Young has received national and international recognition, including the Office of Naval Research’s Young Investigator Award and being elected as a Fellow of the International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE). She also is the recipient of many UCF awards recognizing excellence in discovery, learning, and engagement, including the university’s highest academic honor, Pegasus Professor.