Campus’s new endowed chairs, professorships celebrated

The UC Davis community recognized the more than 80 distinguished faculty members who hold endowed chairs and fellowships at an April 6 banquet in Freeborn Hall. Chancellor Larry Vanderhoef, Provost Virginia Hinshaw and UC Davis Foundation Board of Trustees Chair Michael Chapman spoke at the event, honoring the professors and donors who created the positions.

Nine new chair and professorship holders were recognized, and eight new endowed funds were announced.

"Endowed faculty positions are highly valued on all university campuses, but especially on campuses that are research-intensive," Vanderhoef said. "For a faculty member to be appointed to an endowed chair is a considerable credit."

The positions offer an extra source of money that can be used to support the chairholder's research or teaching. "When it comes to recruiting, there is no single tool that has as much positive influence as an endowed chair or professorship," Vanderhoef said.

The nine honorees are:

Civil and environmental engineering chair Jeannie Darby received the Gerald T. and Lillian P. Orlob Professorship in Water Resources Engineering. Darby is a champion of undergraduate research and helped build the Center for Women Engineers. Her accolades include winning the Chancellor's Award for Undergraduate Mentoring of Research in 2001.

Law professor Robert Hillman was awarded the Fair Business and Investor Advocacy Chair. Hillman is a leading scholar of partnership law, corporate law and securities law. He has lectured throughout the world and has been a visiting professor at New York and Duke universities.

Law professor Edward Imwinkelried received the Edward L. Barrett Professorship. Imwinkelried has published over 100 articles in more than 80 law journals and has written several longer texts. He recently accepted a Defense Department appointment as a member of the Code Committee.

Kevin R. Johnson, associate dean for Academic Affairs at the law school, received the Mabie-Apallas Public Interest Chair. Johnson, an expert on immigration policy, racial identity and civil rights, joined the law faculty in 1989.

Plant science professor Richard Michelmore earned the Novozymes Endowed Chair in Genomics. Michelmore is the director of the UC Davis Genome Center and has done groundbreaking work in plant genomics.

Professor Philip Schwartzkroin of the neurological surgery department was awarded the Bronte Endowed Chair in Epilepsy Research. Schwartzkroin has edited several books on epilepsy, as well as more than 150 peer-reviewed articles. He is a past American Epilepsy Society president and has won the Society's Research Award.

Amparo Villablanca, an associate professor of cardiovascular medicine, received the Frances Lazda Chair in Women's Cardiovascular Medicine. Villablanca, a UC Davis graduate, established the School of Medicine's Women in Medicine Program and founded the medical center's Women's Cardiovascular Health Program.

Enology professor Andrew Waterhouse received the John E. Kinsella Chair in Food, Nutrition and Health. Waterhouse is associate editor of the American Journal of Enology and Viticulture and studies phenolic compounds — substances present in grape skins and seeds.

Professor Mark Zern, director of the UC Davis Transplant Research Institute, received the Fred and Pat Anderson Family Endowed Chair in Transplant Research. Zern is widely recognized for his work in liver fibrosis research, gene therapy and targeting therapeutics to the liver.

New gifts to endow faculty include the: Fred and Pat Anderson Family Endowed Chair in Transplant Research; Bronte Endowed Chair in Epilepsy Research; Dean's Chair in Cardiovascular Research in honor of Joseph Silva, Jr.; Robert M. Hagan Endowed Specialist in Cooperative Extension in Water Management and Policy; Frances Lazda Chair in Women's Cardiovascular Medicine; Endowed Chair in Physiology; Alexander and Elizabeth Swantz Endowed Specialist in Cooperative Extension; and Fair Business Practices and Investor Advocacy Chair.

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Amy Agronis, Dateline, (530) 752-1932, abagronis@ucdavis.edu

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