USF’s loss: By the end of next year, Peter Betzer, 64, will be retiring as dean of USF’s College of Marine Science. The search for his successor has already begun – and it is international in scope. Betzer is that good.
In effect, Betzer IS the marine science program at USF. He built it, and its renown is a direct reflection of his vision and his willingness — indeed, preference — for working outside the cloister of academia. His has been a refreshing, entrepreneurial presence and the college he molded from a modest department has become a recruiting magnet – for USF as well as the city of St. Petersburg.