Steven Corcelli, current interim dean of the College of Science at the University of Notre Dame, will assume the role of dean on April 1, the University announced in a press release Tuesday.
According to the statement, Corcelli will head six various departments housing more than 280 faculty, over 600 doctoral students and 1,726 undergraduate student majors.
Corcelli has served as interim dean of the College since July 1, 2025, replacing Santiago Schnell, who left to serve as provost at Dartmouth College.
“Steve has consistently earned the respect of his colleagues and proven to be a wise and visionary leader who is deeply dedicated to our Catholic mission,” University President Fr. Robert Dowd stated in the announcement.
Corcelli joined the University in 2005 as an assistant professor. He earned a bachelor’s degree in chemistry from Brown University in 1997 and a Ph.D. in chemistry from Yale University in 2002.
The interim dean has held multiple leadership roles at Notre Dame, including serving as associate dean for interdisciplinary studies and faculty development from 2019 to 2022 and chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry from 2022 to 2025.
Provost John McGreevy called Corcelli a “superb dean” and stated, “Over the past two decades at Notre Dame, he has shown a commitment to collaboration and innovation in the laboratory and the classroom.”
“I look forward to working with our community to strengthen partnerships across the University and beyond; support our faculty, students and staff in their pursuit of discovery and learning; and advance an intellectually ambitious vision for science in service to the common good,” Corcelli stated in the release. “Notre Dame has a unique opportunity to integrate scientific discovery with its Catholic mission in ways that serve both the University and the broader world.”