About the Deans
Undergraduate Education
Bio:
Dr. Richard Cardullo is the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, University Honors. In his role, Dr. Cardullo is the Faculty Director of University Honors and also high-impact programs and experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate students.
Dr. Cardullo joined UCR faculty in 1991 as an Associate Professor of Biology and has held a variety of roles leadership roles at UCR, including the Chair for the Biology Department (2004-2009) and Divisional Dean of Life Sciences in the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences (2010-2012). After completing his Ph.D. in Biophysics from Johns Hopkins University in 1985, Dr. Cardullo was an NIH National Research Service Award postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University and a Senior Research Associate at the Worcester Foundation for Experimental Biology. His research has focused on the molecular, cellular, and physical determinants of fertilization in a variety of animal systems and also research on how people learn in K-12 and undergraduate environments. Professor Cardullo has taught a wide range of classes at UCR at both the undergraduate and graduate levels.
In 1999, he received the UCR Academic Senate Distinguished Teaching Award, and in 2007 was named a UCR Distinguished Teaching Professor. In 2006 he was recognized as a National Academy of Sciences Life Science Leadership Fellow. In 2012 he was selected as one of 40 educators as an American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Vision and Change fellow. He is the Chair of the Board of the Biological Sciences Curriculum Study in Colorado Springs, a nonprofit organization that researches the teaching and learning of science, and previously served as the President of the Pacific Division of AAAS and the Western Regional Honors Council.
Throughout his career, Dr. Cardullo has been supportive of student success programs on campus, has been the project director for three graduate training grants, and is currently the project director for the UC California Alliance for Minority Participation (CAMP).
Undergraduate Education
Bio:
Dr. Robert Ream is the Associate Dean for Undergraduate Education, Student Success. In his role, Dr. Ream initiates and leads a variety of programs focused on supporting the undergraduate student population at UCR, including broad-based retention, students’ feelings of belonging, timely graduate rates, and the overall academic success of UCR undergraduates.
Dr. Robert Ream joined UC Riverside faculty in 2004 after completing postdoctoral fellowships at Princeton University and the RAND Corporation. While on leave from UCR (2013-2015), Dr. Ream served as an Associate Program Officer at the Spencer Foundation in Chicago. In 2019, he was appointed Interim Associate Dean of Undergraduate Education Programs in the School of Education at UC Riverside, which saw increased enrollment and graduation rates during his tenure. Dr. Ream has served as PI or Co-PI on grants that include studies funded by the Institute of Education Sciences, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health. His research interests include social capital, trust, and the social dynamics of inequality in educational opportunity and achievement in K-12 and higher education settings. Eliminating large differences in opportunity and achievement among vulnerable student populations is a central focus of his scholarship on the political, economic, and health underpinnings of educational inequality.
Throughout his career, Dr. Ream has focused on creating the essential structures needed for a supportive educational community—including holistic advising, student seminars, writing support, service-learning opportunities, and scholarships—to bolster student achievement, persistence, and overall well-being. As part of this effort, the School of Education recently announced the Black Community Education Promise (BCEP) Scholars Program designed to support incoming freshman or transfer students who historically have not been well served in higher education. In his new role as Associate Dean for Student Success, Dr. Ream will continue his work to bridge opportunity gaps and support UCR’s diverse undergraduate student body.