Alum Heads Vandy’s College of Arts and Science
By James J. Lidington
Old Dominion University provided more than an education for Richard McCarty.
Dean of Vanderbilt University’s College of Arts and Science since 2001, McCarty said he developed an interest in teaching and research as an undergraduate and graduate student at ODU in the 1970s, both of which led to his career in higher education.
The Portsmouth native received his bachelor’s degree in biology in 1970 and his master’s in zoology in 1972. He cited current or former faculty members Nancy Wade, Dorothy South, Daniel Sonenshine and John Richardson as his most influential instructors.
“Nancy Wade instilled in me a lifelong love of teaching that I’ll be eternally grateful for,” McCarty said. “A visiting faculty member, Dorothy South, encouraged me to come back to graduate school. And Dr. Sonenshine's dedication to research matched Nancy’s dedication to teaching.”
Richardson supervised McCarty’s master’s thesis on stress in laboratory mice, and the young man was so interested in its behavioral components, he decided to pursue a doctorate in comparative animal behavior at The Johns Hopkins University, which he received in 1976.
After two years as a postdoctoral fellow at the National Institute of Mental Health, McCarty began his academic career at the University of Virginia in 1978, where he remained in various capacities until 2001. His main research interests included studies on the physiology of stress and the development of high blood pressure in animal models. During a leave from 1998-2001, he served as executive director for science at the American Psychological Association in Washington, D.C.
McCarty’s background also includes an appointment as a visiting scientist for the Clinical Neuroscience Branch of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke in 1994-95 and a 10-year stint as behavioral science coordinator for the FBI National Academy.
At Vanderbilt, McCarty oversees all of the university’s liberal arts programs, as well as those in the social and natural sciences – everything from art and classical studies to physics and astronomy. The college contains 20 academic departments and 15 interdisciplinary programs, with an enrollment of 3,500 undergraduate and 600 graduate students.
McCarty said he came to Vanderbilt “because it is such an outstanding research institution with aspirations to be even better.”
Married right out of high school, McCarty said he delayed college for a year to save for his education. And he credits his wife, Sheila, for working numerous jobs to help pay the bills. McCarty also is grateful to Old Dominion for the education he received. “I remember having people who were dedicated teachers and, in several cases, talented researchers. Without that great start, I would never have had a chance to go to Hopkins.”
He added, “ODU has been the launching point for many successful careers.”
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