Julie Greenwood, vice dean for Educational Initiatives in EdPlus at Arizona State University (ASU), will join the University of California, Davis, as its next dean of Continuing and Professional Education (CPE). Greenwood will start on Oct. 16.

Susan Catron announced last year she would retire this fall after five years as dean of CPE and more than 20 years in leadership roles at UC Davis.

“Julie is a dynamic and experienced leader who has leveraged emerging education models to boost learning opportunities and outcomes,” said Mary Croughan, provost and executive vice chancellor. “She is a collaborator, an innovator and a champion for expanding access to higher education for nontraditional and underrepresented student populations,” she added. “We are fortunate that CPE is well-positioned thanks to Susan Catron’s leadership, and I am confident Julie will build on our past successes.”

Greenwood will oversee about 160 staff and 865 contract instructors, and a division that generates $41 million in self-supporting revenue. CPE has more than 56,000 enrollments annually — the third-largest UC extension as measured by enrollment — and serves learners in the Sacramento region, all 50 U.S. states and more than 100 countries. In addition to its thousands of enrollments in professional, academic and enrichment courses, CPE has millions of enrollments in Massive Open Online Courses.

Greenwood has served as vice dean for four years at EdPlus, the university's enterprise unit that administers more than 300 undergraduate and graduate online degree programs and has more than 85,000 students through ASU Online. She is also an associate professor in ASU’s School of Mathematical and Natural Sciences.

“UC Davis CPE has built a diverse portfolio of exceptional programs supporting the access mission for pre-college and international learners and providing workforce development for human services and other professionals across the globe,” Greenwood said. “This is a rapidly evolving field, and I am excited to work with this outstanding division of educators to lead UC Davis in digital learning innovation and development of online courses, degree completion pathways, and graduate credentials and degrees.”

Prior to joining ASU, Greenwood held several leadership roles during nearly two decades at Oregon State University, including associate provost for Transformative Learning in the Division of Academic Programs and Learning Innovation. She was the associate dean for Undergraduate Studies, and the associate dean for Academic and Student Affairs in the College of Science. Greenwood also served for 16 years as director of the Cell Imaging and Analysis Facility for the Environmental Health Sciences Center at Oregon State University, one of six environmental health sciences centers established by the National Institutes of Health.

Greenwood has a bachelor’s degree in biology from Siena College in Loudonville, New York, and a doctorate in neuroscience/pharmacology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.