King’s College London Appoints New Executive Dean of the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences
Professor Rachel Bearon has been appointed as the Executive Dean of the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences (NMES) at King’s from 1 January 2024.
A Professor of Mathematical Biology, Rachel is currently Head of the Department of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Liverpool. She is also a Fellow of the Institute of Mathematics and its applications (IMA), where she has been on its council (2017-23), and an Executive Committee member for the set-up phase of the new National Academy for Mathematical Sciences, where she is leading the communication and advocacy workstream ahead of the Academy’s launch in 2025.
Rachel is an international expert in applying mathematics to health challenges. Her research focuses on the spatial and temporal dynamics of biological systems, ranging from bacterial chemotaxis, cancer cell motility and phytoplankton in turbulence, to modelling cell-signalling pathways, intracellular protein dynamics and drug transport. Rachel is also an Associate Member of the Royal Northern College of Music’s PRiSM Centre, a collaborative, multidisciplinary research environment that brings together artists, scientists and researchers to cultivate connections and support the emergence of new knowledge.
I am honoured and delighted to be appointed Executive Dean of the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences. I am excited to lead the Faculty which is on a fantastic growth trajectory for interdisciplinary research and education, and to champion our shared responsibilities – to each other as staff and students within King’s, and to wider society.
Professor Rachel Bearon, incoming Executive Dean of the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences (NMES)
During her time at the University of Liverpool, Rachel has contributed to a broad range of teaching in the Department of Mathematical Sciences for undergraduate and postgraduate students, redeveloping materials and methods that strengthen research-led teaching. A passionate supporter of encouraging children and young people into STEM subjects, Rachel was the 2022 President of the Mathematics Section of the British Science Association and is a Trustee of the University of Liverpool Maths School, the first specialist 16-19 maths school in the North of England.
This is an exciting and important appointment for King’s and I’m delighted that Professor Rachel Bearon will be joining us at the start of 2024. Her leadership will be crucial as we continue with our significant investment in research and education in sciences and engineering. She will be working with our colleagues in the Faculty of Natural, Mathematical & Engineering Sciences to accelerate our commitment to address major societal challenges by leveraging our strengths in areas such as Artificial Intelligence and digital technology, the physical sciences of life and net zero technologies, and through the interdisciplinary connections across King’s and beyond.
Professor Rachel Mills, Senior Vice President (Academic)