As Auburn University’s Assistant Provost for Institutional Effectiveness, Dr. Bob Boyd supports the development of evidence-based assessment practices and strategic planning efforts designed to enhance the institution’s operations. With an emphasis on developing data-informed strategies, Boyd coordinates various enterprise information systems to increase outcomes knowledge and foster continuous improvement. As assistant provost, Boyd leads the Offices of Academic Insight, Information Technology, and Institutional Research and oversees the university’s accreditation, academic program review, and data governance processes.
A professor in the Department of Biological Sciences for more than 30 years, Boyd earned his doctorate in Botany from the University of California, Davis, in 1986. He joined Auburn’s Botany and Microbiology Department in 1988 as assistant professor and was promoted to professor in 2000 when the Department of Biological Sciences was established. In addition to serving as Undergraduate Program Officer, Boyd also served as Interim Department Chair from August to December 2015. He has taught courses ranging from freshman introductory biology to graduate-level classes with a recent emphasis on teaching conservation biology and plant ecology courses.
Boyd’s research interests include the management of rare and endangered plants and the ecology and evolution of metal hyperaccumulator plants. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed journal articles, has been a guest editor for special issues of four scientific journals (Insect Science, Northeastern Naturalist, Australian Journal of Botany, and Ecological Research), and has served on the editorial boards of three other scientific journals.
