Sarah Gross Named Dean of School of Health Sciences
To the Campus Community:
I am pleased to announce the appointment of Sarah T. Gross, PhD, as the new dean of
Farmingdale State College’s Theresa Patnode Santmann School of Health Sciences, effective
August 19, 2024.
Sarah has served as chair of the Biology Department since 2017. Under her leadership,
the department has grown to support 75 faculty and staff. She was instrumental in
advancing a curricular change for the bioscience program and submitting a Letter of
Intent to SUNY for the Quality Assurance and Regulatory Affairs master’s program.
In addition, Sarah has worked to maintain high quality general education courses that
specifically support our health science programs and has overseen the College’s pre-health
post-baccalureate certificate program.
Joining the faculty at FSC in 2006 as an assistant professor of biology, Sarah quickly
moved into a leadership role as curriculum director of the bioscience program. Achieving
tenure in 2013 and the rank of full professor in 2022, Sarah clearly demonstrated
her commitment and passion for student success.
Sarah’s research is focused on the replication cycle of herpesviruses, specifically
on understanding the interactions involved in the process of envelopment. Additionally,
she collaborated with Stony Brook University to study the effects of titanium dioxide
nanoparticles on herpesvirus infection. She has several publications and presentations
to her credit, and continues to seek out grant opportunities to support her work.
A passionate and committed member of the FSC community, Sarah has been deeply involved
in service at all levels, most recently chairing the Farmingdale Executive Committee
(FEC) since 2022. She also chaired the College-Wide Curriculum Committee (CWCC) from
2011 to 2015. She received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching in 2017.
I would like to thank the search committee for their diligence and commitment during
the selection process.
Please join me in congratulating Sarah on her appointment and welcoming her to the
School of Health Sciences.
Laura Joseph, EdD
Senior Vice President and Provost
