After 16 years with the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development (CSDD), Deputy Director Ken Getz will be taking the reins from retiring Director Kenneth Kaitin effective Jan. 1.

Getz, who founded CenterWatch (now WCG CenterWatch) in 1994, is an internationally recognized expert on drug development and clinical research trends and an associate professor at Tufts University. As CSDD’s deputy director he has been responsible for leading all of the center’s grant-funded research.

He also is board chair of the Center for Information and Study on Clinical Research Participation, a Boston-based nonprofit he founded to educate the public, patients, medical/research communities, the media and policymakers about clinical research.

In addition to writing numerous peer-reviewed journal articles, Getz is the author of The Gift of Participation: A Guide to Making Informed Decisions About Volunteering for a Clinical Trial.

Kaitin will continue his association with CSDD as a senior fellow.