Q&A with Dean Dietz
Interview conducted Aug. 6, 2025
Q: What attracted you to the School of Pharmacy Dean’s position?
A: It was an amazing and unprecedented opportunity to lead a world class school. I’m thrilled about the opportunity to engage faculty, students, staff, and our distinguished alumni to build on a phenomenal tradition and hopefully take it to the next level—across all our missions: research, education and service to the community.
Q: Professionally, you have an academic research path that’s focused on the functions, behavior and disorders of the human mind. What intrigues you about the brain?
A: Everything! There is literally nothing about the brain that doesn’t intrigue me. It’s the only organ that can think about itself. I believe it to be the last frontier, the truly last frontier of understanding in the medical realm. The amount of information we know about the brain, the mind and its function is actually nothing compared to what we don’t know. We understand how many of the other organ systems work in the body, but understanding something like; where do thoughts live, where are decisions made, and where’s your conscience? It’s a world in the realm of the unknown.
There are so many people suffering from diseases of this complex organ. Scientifically and medically, we lack the understanding to fully diagnose and treat these patients. For years, many people who suffered from so-called behavioral changes were marginalized and stigmatized. Finally, there’s awareness of the need to determine why that occurs.
Q: What would you like us to know about your research?
A: I’m passionate about understanding the brain’s cellular mechanisms that drive behavioral plasticity. For example, why do individuals suffer from chronic diseases like substance use disorder and depression? Embedded within KU’s Pharmacy School is a tremendous group of researchers that also study this. So synergistically, we can do amazing things.
Q: When you interviewed on campus, you shared a personal story about your educational journey—what provoked you to pursue higher education.
A: High school was the worst two weeks of my life! I didn’t see a lot of value in education when I was younger. Having spent much of that time in Indiana and Ohio, I grew up very Midwestern but wound up going back home to New Jersey and wrangled my way to a high school diploma. I continued on a pathway that was nonacademic. I held service level jobs for a few years, which are phenomenal, but I spent a lot of time being told by others how inept I was. It didn’t take too long to recognize that I wanted to do something bigger. The only way to do that was through education.
I mentioned this journey in my interview for two reasons. One, when we look for only those people who have a traditional pathway in our educational system, we bypass a lot of people who have lived experiences that can really contribute to our schools, our universities and our communities. The second is, you’re never too old to start again. It doesn’t matter how long it takes you or how old you are, it’s the outcome that is important, right? I want the rest of the world to know that you can’t give up on people, and you can’t give up on yourself.
We all start from different places, and I think we need to acknowledge that. From an educational standpoint, from our work experiences, we all start from different places. It may take somebody longer to get to the same place for a particular task. It doesn’t mean that for everything it’s going to take them longer, and it might mean that the next thing, they might be twice as good as everyone else. I hate to see people giving up and just saying, ‘I can’t do it, or I’m not going to be on track with everyone else, or that’s not my path.’ Perhaps you just need a different path.
That’s something as a school we can work on. I don’t think higher ed in general does a good enough job of identifying those students that might need a little different experience. I believe we need to start doing that.
Q: Tell us a little bit more about your upbringing.
A: I was born in New York. We did what most people did in the 70s, we slowly moved from New York to New Jersey. You can only understand that if you’ve lived there. I spent some time in Ohio and in Indiana then went back to New Jersey. I was raised by a single mom and then a single aunt. That was important, because it showed me the power of hard work and sacrifice. They both worked very, very hard to achieve where they were, and it gave me a level of respect and understanding of the difficulty of balancing work and life.
Before finishing my undergraduate degree at Rutgers, I went to community college, where I continued to have some fits and starts. Here too, I need to say, we undervalue community college, but it can be a place for students to sort out a path forward. They were very supportive of making sure that I got to the next level. I’m glad to know that many of our transfer students into the KU School of Pharmacy are from community colleges.
Q: How’s your family transition to Kansas been so far?
A: My wife Karen and I have a 14-year-old daughter. It’s been different for her, but Buffalo’s a very Midwest city, so I think she will adapt well. Driving out here, I was like, oh, yeah, I remember this. It’s much like Indiana’s landscape, so it’s very home-feeling to me. We’ve really enjoyed it. The people have been phenomenal. I will say, it’s difficult to be a Bills fan in Kansas City (laughing). Especially Kansas City! But people have been good natured about that, and it’s actually been a great conversation starter. People have been really kind and funny about that—13 seconds and all—just Google it.
Q: How would you describe your leadership style?
A: You probably should ask the people who have worked with me, but I try to be engaging. I try to let people be heard. But I also think it’s important to make decisions. In addressing problems or getting past difficult challenges, I want people to be heard and respected. I want to be collaborative, but eventually decisions must be made.
Q: Leading a school of pharmacy can be daunting, of course, lots of balls in the air, lots of challenges and issues. In your first weeks and months, what would you like to accomplish?
A: Talk to people. Build relationships. Understand the strategic strengths of the school. Understand barriers to further growth and excellence and develop a cohesive and empowering strategic plan for the school.
Q: What are your hopes and dreams for the KU School of Pharmacy?
A: To continue to build. As with any role I’ve ever had, I want to leave things in a better place than I found it. That means, I want to continue to help it grow, to connect with our partners in the health sciences, and to connect with our partners on the Lawrence campus. I want to make the School of Pharmacy the hub for research across KU. There’s virtually no aspect of any of the schools or institutes on campus that we can’t be a part of.
Q: How can KU Pharmacy faculty, staff, students, and alumni be of help to you?
A: Just keep being excellent. Students should know that we’re here for them. We just need them to do their best, tell us when the environment isn’t helpful, and let us help them toward their goals. Faculty and staff, just continue being amazing teachers, being amazing partners with our students, continue coming up with world renowned scientific breakthroughs, and most importantly, be partners to one another.
I think it’s important for everyone to know that we aren’t facing any insurmountable issues. How difficult we want to make it on ourselves to overcome any sort of issue is up to us collectively. We’re not alone in some of the challenges that we face as a school and as a university. Sometimes we may think that the grass is greener elsewhere, but it is not. We’re an amazing school, with amazing facilities, with an amazing reputation, amazing faculty, amazing staff, and passionate students. What else could you ask for? Those are the tools for success.
I truly believe that the provost and higher administration at KU have a deep passion for the success of the school. You add all those things together, and we cannot fail.
