ANN ARBOR—Four University of Michigan faculty members were given the emeritus title by the U-M Regents at their Oct. 19-20 meeting.

Those retiring are Paul S. Fancher Jr., senior research scientist in the U-M Transportation Research Institute; Walter J. Loesche, the Marcus L. Ward Professor of Dentistry and professor of dentistry and of microbiology; Harrison L. Morton, professor of forest pathology; and H. Dennis Smith, professor of music.

Fancher has been with the University since 1957, initially as a research assistant at the Institute of Science and Technology before joining the Highway Safety Research Institute in 1969. He served as acting head of the Engineering Research Division of the U-M Transportation Research Institute in 1986-89 and, until his retirement, as the division’s associate head. “His modeling and analysis concepts have aided the effort by automobile and heavy truck makers around the world to develop ‘active safety’ technologies meant to assist the driver in safe and convenient control of the motor vehicle,” noted the Regents, who cited his work on active safety technology, including adaptive cruise control and collision warning applications. In 1997, Fancher, a U-M alumnus, received the National Award for the Advancement of Motor Vehicle Research and Development, established by Congress as the highest national recognition given in the field.

Loesche, a member of the U-M faculty since 1969, has been “an extremely creative and productive researcher,” the Regents said. “Dr. Loesche’s work was key in changing our understanding of both caries and periodontal disease by recognizing them as bacterial infections. His research involving bacterial anaerobes and their role in periodontal disease led to the use of metronidazole or doxycycline as treatment alternatives to surgical intervention for these conditions,” they added. In recognition of his work, a new species of gram-negative anaerobic rods isolated from the oral cavity was named Bacteroides loescheii in 1988.

A member of the University faculty since 1966, Morton directed the Nichols Arboretum from 1986 to 1999. The Regents said, “In this role, he initiated major programs in support of student research and established a Friends group, a newsletter, and a volunteer docent organization.” He led fund-raising efforts to move the historic Burnham House to the Arboretum, where it now functions as the James D. Reader Jr. Urban Environmental Education Center and office for Arboretum staff. Morton, an expert on tree diseases and wood decay, “described new major foliage diseases on Douglas fir and unraveled the biology and then disease control using chemical, cultural, and genetic resistance techniques,” the Regents added.

Trombonist Smith, who joined the School of Music faculty in 1980, “was an exceptional and valuable teacher and mentor, able to attract high quality students who were well trained musically and technically,” the Regents noted. While at Michigan, Smith “shared his talent by performing at numerous high schools and community colleges in Michigan and Ohio. He was recognized as an excellent musician and recording artist,” the Regents added. Smith was the principal trombonist with the Toledo Symphony from 1982 until his retirement, performing more than 40 concerts each year.