Sharon Quisenberry

Sharon Quisenberry is leaving her position as dean of Virginia Tech's College of Agriculture and Life Sciences for a vice president position at Iowa State University, Tech announced Wednesday.

Quisenberry will become Iowa State's vice president for research and economic development April 1. She will step down as dean March 1. She has held the position since 2003.

Quisenberry said the decision to leave Tech was a difficult one, but she is from the Midwest and will be returning to Iowa State, where she started her career as an assistant professor of entomology from 1980 to 1982.

Her career also includes stops at Montana State University, the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the University of Idaho and Louisiana State University.

"I can't say enough good things about Virginia Tech or the college and faculty, staff and students," she said.

In a release from the university Wednesday, Provost Mark McNamee praised Quisenberry for her energy and creativity. McNamee will work with the university's academic council to find an internal interim replacement for Quisenberry.

Quisenberry is the first woman to lead the agricultural college at Tech, which dates to the university's founding in 1872.

During her time as dean, enrollment in the college grew from about 1,800 to more than 2,500 students and funding from research grants grew from about $20 million to about $60 million. The college undertook initiatives in fields such as bioprocessing, nutrition and health, obesity and biosecurity.

"The research we were able to do will allow us to do a better job for the people of Virginia," she said. "It's already starting to happen."

-- Greg Esposito