Meet the Provost
ELITA PASTRA-LANDIS, a professor of chemistry whose research centers on the structure and function of proteins, took office as interim provost for the 2008-2009 academic year.
Pastra-Landis first came to Wheaton in 1965 as an undergraduate, graduating with an A.B. in chemistry. She earned her Ph.D. from the Harvard University Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, studying with Nobel Prize winner William N. Lipscomb. Pastra-Landis first taught at Wheaton in 1974 as a visiting lecturer while still a graduate student and returned in 1979 to teach full-time in the department of her mentor, Professor of Chemistry Emerita Bojan Jennings.
During her career, Pastra-Landis, has served Wheaton in many roles. For more than a decade, she has served as chair of the chemistry department. She also has served on numerous faculty and institutional committees, including presidential search and strategic planning panels.
As a teacher and scholar, Pastra-Landis has devoted many years to the study of proteins, particularly the relationship between their structure and function. Her work has earned her a number of academic distinctions, including a Fulbright Foundation Travel Grant and a Danforth Foundation Fellowship. Her research, much of it involving collaboration with Wheaton students, has been published in science journals and presented at scholarly conferences. In recognition of her work, she has held two of the college's faculty chairs: the Bojan H. Jennings Professor of Natural Sciences chair and the William and Elsie Prentice Professor chair.
In her spare time, Pastra-Landis enjoys running (she has completed five marathons) and scuba diving. She also enjoys traveling with her husband, Professor of Physics Emeritus Jim Landis, especially to Greece, where she was born.