After seeking advice and recommendations from faculty, staff and supporters of the Luskin School, UCLA Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost Darnell Hunt has announced the selection of Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris as the interim dean to succeed Gary Segura when he steps down on Dec. 31. Here is the text of the announcement:

Dear Colleagues:

Following the recent announcement of Gary Segura’s decision to step down as dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, I write to share the news that Anastasia Loukaitou-Sideris — UCLA Luskin’s associate dean of academic affairs, a distinguished professor of urban planning and a core faculty member of the UCLA Urban Humanities Initiative — has agreed to serve as interim dean of the school. She will begin this appointment on January 1, 2023, and serve for up to two and a half years. We will conduct a national search for a new permanent dean during the 2024-25 academic year.

Professor Loukaitou-Sideris joined the faculty of the department of urban planning in 1989 and has served as the associate dean of UCLA Luskin since 2010. Beyond her long record of service in the dean’s office, she has held a number of other leadership positions at UCLA, including associate provost for academic planning from 2016 to 2019 and chair of the department of urban planning from 2002 to 2008. The author or editor of 13 books, she is a preeminent scholar known for her research integrating social and physical issues in urban planning and architecture, emphasizing the need to understand the perspectives of those who live and work in a community when designing its built environment.

Professor Loukaitou-Sideris brings a wealth of relevant experience to her new position at the helm of UCLA Luskin. But beyond institutional knowledge, she also has the right temperament for the role: Colleagues across the school consider her to be a thoughtful, fair, transparent, hard-working and dedicated public servant. She will provide continuity and help advance key initiatives at the school during this period of transition.

I hope you will join me in thanking outgoing Dean Segura for his leadership and ongoing service as a faculty member, and in expressing gratitude to Professor Loukaitou-Sideris for taking on her new role.

Sincerely,

Darnell Hunt

Executive Vice Chancellor and Provost