Phyllis M. Wise is a biomedical researcher. Most recently, she served as the chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign.
Wise received a bachelor's degree in biology from Swarthmore College in 1967, an M.A. (1969) and then a doctorate (1972) in zoology from the University of Michigan. She was a postdoctoral fellow there from 1972–74. She was awarded honorary degrees from Swarthmore College (2008) and the University of Birmingham (2015)
In 1976, she was appointed Assistant Professor of physiology at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. In 1993, she was appointed professor of physiology and chair of the department at the University of Kentucky in Lexington, Kentucky. In 2002, she became Dean of the College of Biological Sciences at University of California-Davis, holding also the rank of Distinguished Professor of Neurobiology, Physiology and Behavior in its College of Biological Sciences, and Professor of Physiology and Membrane Biology in its School of Medicine.
Her principal area of research has been the effect of hormones on the female brain during development, adulthood, and aging. Her research uncovered the diverse actions of estrogens on the brain, including its protective effects after stroke injury. She was funded by the NIH for 32 consecutive years during which she received two 10-year MERIT awards, and led center and program project grants. In 2014, she admitted to omitting citations of her publications in one of her review articles.
Starting in 2005, Wise served as Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at the University of Washington. Later, held the position of interim President there in 2010-2011. During her service at the University of Washington, she led the establishment of the College of the Environment.
In 2011, Wise was appointed Chancellor of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. She led the establishment of a unique engineering-driven college of medicine that will train the next generation of doctors who will use technology and big data to develop new materials, new devices, new imaging, and new robotics to provide better medical care to more people at lower cost. She also created partnerships between the university and community leaders to encourage economic development, leading to greater vibrancy of the Urbana-Champaign region and the university. Wise enhanced the University of Illinois's presence in multiple countries around the world to encourage global educational, research, and corporate collaborations.