Regents approved appointments to endowed and titled professorships

Appointments to endowed and titled professorships

ANN ARBOR—The University of Michigan Regents, at their Sept. 21-22 meeting, appointed eight faculty members to endowed or titled professorships.

Dionissios N. Assanis, professor of mechanical engineering and Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, was appointed the Jon R. and Beverly S. Holt Professor of Engineering, effective Sept. 1, 2000-Aug. 31, 2005.

“Prof. Assanis is one of the most prominent and active automotive researchers focused on internal combustion engine processes,” said Stephen W. Director, the Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering. “In 1999, he was appointed Arthur F. Thurnau Professor in recognition of his outstanding contributions to undergraduate education. His distinguished career exemplifies the highest standards in all aspects of academic performance. His teaching, research and mentoring of students will continue to contribute successfully to the excellent reputation of the College and the University.”

Heather A. Carlson, assistant professor of medicinal chemistry, also will be the John Gideon Searle Assistant Professor of Medicinal Chemistry, effective Aug. 1, 2000-
“The John Gideon Searle Assistant Professorship was established to recognize a promising scholar at the junior level in any discipline within the College of Pharmacy,” said George L. Kenyon, dean of the College of Pharmacy. “Dr. Carlson received her B.S. magna cum laude in mathematics, chemistry and physics in 1991 from North Central College and went on to Yale University to complete her M.S. and Ph.D. in physical chemistry in 1992 and 1997, respectively. Upon graduation, she began a three-year postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, San Diego.”

Geoffrey Howard Eley, professor of history, was appointed the Sylvia L. Thrupp Collegiate Professor of Comparative History, effective Sept. 1, 2000-Aug. 31, 2005.

“In his 20 years at Michigan, Prof. Eley has done more than anyone to open faculty and students to an interdisciplinary terrain between the social sciences and the humanities,” Shirley Neuman, dean of the College of Literature, Science, and the Arts, said. “He has been an institution builder—a co-founder and frequent director of the Program in Comparative Studies of Social Transformations, a principal architect of cooperation in the field of German studies, a stalwart of the long effort to create a viable Center for Western European Studies, an active participant in the Program in Film and Video Studies, and a supporter of a variety of initiatives, including the Women’s Studies Program.

“Even more important,” Neuman added, “has been the intellectual terrain he has worked to clear—from working on the cutting edge of social history in the 1970s, and subsequently emphasizing the contributions of cultural studies to historical scholarship. His influence has been great, lasting through a number of phases of scholarly trends, and he has consistently encouraged diversity and integration of different approaches.”

Philip D. Gingerich, director and curator, Museum of Paleontology and professor of geological sciences and of biological sciences, was appointed the Ermine Cowles Case Collegiate Professor of Paleontology, effective Sept. 1, 2000-Aug. 31, 2005.

“Although focused in the areas of vertebrate paleontology and evolutionary biology, Prof. Gingerich’s work reaches into the fields of geology, biology, paleontology, anthropology and anatomy,” Neuman said. “Leaders in these fields simultaneously recognize the centrality of Prof. Gingerich’s work in their own discipline and the breadth of his impact in all these related areas of the natural sciences. To be active in so many areas of research and scholarship, to sustain productivity over a long interval of time, to receive unanimous recognition, and to remain at the forefront of a vigorous enterprise such as the study of life’s history as revealed in the rock record, is evidence of a contribution few of us could realistically aspire to.”

Allen S. Lichter, dean of the Medical School and professor of radiation oncology, was appointed the Newman Family Professor of Radiation Oncology, effective Oct. 1, 2000-Sept. 30, 2005.

“Dr. Lichter is an acknowledged expert in the area of breast cancer,” said Gilbert S. Omenn, executive vice president for medical affairs. “He was an early advocate of the lumpectomy approach to the treatment of breast cancer and conducted one of the trials that found the use of lumpectomy and radiation therapy to be as effective as the traditional treatment of mastectomy. Dr. Lichter is well recognized in the field, as noted by his activities in numerous professional societies and organizations of the speciality. He is the past president of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, the largest and most active group for oncology membership in the world, and Dr. Lichter is only the second radiation oncologist to be elected to this prestigious post.”

Nancy E. Reame, professor of nursing, was named the Rhetaugh Graves Dumas Professor of Nursing, effective Sept. 1, 2000-
“Dr. Reame is a senior scholar with a national and international reputation and an ongoing track record of funded research in the important areas of reproductive health, genetics and clinical therapies,” said Ada Sue Hinshaw, dean of the School of Nursing. “Specifically, her research program focuses on reproductive endocrinology, menstrual cycle, menopause, infertility and bioethics of assisted reproduction.

“Dr. Reame has sustained an unequivocal record of excellence in teaching, a sustained and growing record of scholarly eminence in nursing that advances the frontier of knowledge in reproductive science. She enjoys an outstanding reputation among peers in the United States and abroad, and a reputation for scholarly leadership.”

Abigail J. Stewart was named to the Agnes Inglis Collegiate Professorship of Psychology and Women’s Studies, effective Sept. 1, 2000-Aug. 31, 2005. She also is professor of psychology and of women’s studies.

“Prof. Stewart is internationally recognized for her development of a theory of emotional adaptation, based upon developmental models,” Neuman said. “Over the course of her career she has developed highly sophisticated theories of change and continuity in personality development and how major life events affect intra-psychic change.

“Repeatedly, words such as generous, dedicated, innovative, stimulating and demanding crop up to describe Prof. Stewart’s teaching and mentoring. She truly shines in this area. An overriding trend in her former students, now professors at universities and colleges across the United States, is that they all model their teaching after her. And she has accomplished all this by combining high standards with positive reinforcement as well as judicious criticism with effective strategies for improvement.”

Gaylyn Studlar was appointed the Rudolf Arnheim Collegiate Professor of Film Studies, effective Sept. 1, 2000-Aug. 31, 2005. She also is professor of English, of women’s studies and of music.

“Prof. Studlar has established herself as one of the premier film scholars in the United States,” said Neuman and Karen L. Wolff, dean of the School of Music. “She has remained a highly productive and influential scholar while performing her duties as program director these past five years. Referees speak of her imaginative and daring intellectual courage, theoretical sophistication, careful research and unfailing originality. The impact of her work on film studies and gender studies, her national and even international reputation, and her ongoing, robust schedule of scholarly output make her an ideal candidate for a collegiate professorship. She also has established a reputation for her excellence in the classroom, and students rate her highly for her thorough knowledge of the field, clarity of presentation and explanation, enthusiasm, and imaginative quality of her writing assignments.”

RegentsDionissios N. AssanisHeather A. CarlsonGeorge L. KenyonGeoffrey Howard EleyCollege of Literature, Science, and the ArtsPhilip D. Gingerich