He wants to incorporate teaching into graduate school curriculum. He'd like to reduce the overall size of the GSAS. Ellison would also like to enhance research training for all students through a program called "Research Apprenticeships." Also on the agenda are plans to expand a pilot summer orientation program for international students.

Ellison, who himself earned his Ph.D. from GSAS, says he sees serving as dean as an opportunity to give back to Harvard.

"[Being GSAS Dean] is both daunting and challenging, and very rewarding," he says. "There's no break with what's being done in the past and I feel very wonderful to be building on the wonderful legacy left by [former GSAS Dean] Christoph Wolff."

While fulfilling his responsibilities as dean takes up an "enormous amount of time," Ellison continues to teach. This semester, he is teaching an upper-level undergraduate anthropology course and will teach graduate seminars as well.

Ellison's work as an anthropologist focuses on the evolution of the human reproductive system in response to environmental challenges like workload and disease, as well as the effects of factors like age. His fieldwork began 15 years ago with the pygmies of central South America and now includes work from Poland, Paraguay and Argentina.

A book spanning 15 years of Ellison's work as an anthropologist is due out this spring. Entitled "On Fertile Ground," the book attempts to explain the evolution of the human reproductive system.

Juggling the duties of an administrator and a professor is nothing new for Ellison. His list of administrative positions includes former chair of the Anthropology Department, chair of the Committee on Graduate Student Financial Aid and associate FAS dean.