Named Chairs & Professorships

Our faculty members are recognized for their national preeminence in research and creative activity and their unwavering commitment to undergraduate and graduate education. Recruiting and retaining world-class faculty pays immeasurable dividends to our students, the Commonwealth, nation, and society. We are honored to acknowledge the following named chairs and professorships, many of which have been made possible through generous investment by alumni, parents and friends.

Dwight W. Allen Distinguished Professorship in Education Policy and Reform

Steven M. Gluckstern

School of Education

Donor: Steven M. Gluckstern, Ed.D. '74, Education

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Steven Gluckstern is founder of and general partner in Azimuth Alternative Assets LLC, which provides business support and other services to entities providing investment advisory and management services. He was formerly Chairman of Zurich Reinsurance and CEO of Capital Z Partners (asset manager of alternative investment pools). His father, Robert Gluckstern, was a physics professor, department head, Associate Provost, then Provost and Vice Chancellor at UMass Amherst. His mother, Norma Gluckstern, is a UMass Amherst graduate. Steven Gluckstern has endowed two professorships at UMass Amherst, one in Physics to honor his father and this professorship to honor his mentor, Dwight Allen, whom he attributes as having had a major influence on his life and the success he enjoys today.

The Professorship

This professorship provides funding for a position in the Center for Education Policy which was created to serve the educational policy development and evaluation needs of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, New England, and beyond. Professor Sharon F. Rallis was appointed to the position in the fall of 2005. Professor Rallis has a national reputation for her work in education policy and evaluation. As President of the American Evaluation Association, she is known and respected by evaluators and policy analysts nation-wide. Her expertise in educational leadership and reform and policy studies makes her the ideal candidate for this professorship and the Center's capacity to expand its research into key issues of national concern and facilitation of increased contacts with policymakers and educational leaders.

Alpha Tau Gamma Fred P. Jeffrey Professorship and Directorship of the Stockbridge School of Agriculture

Stockbridge School of Agriculture

Donors: Alpha Tau Gamma, Inc., Estate of Russell B. Davis, Stockbridge Foundation Inc., Mario DiCarlo'48, and alumni and friends.

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Spearheaded by Jim Mulcahy ’60, and created through generous support from Alpha Tau Gamma, Inc., Estate of Russell B. Davis, Stockbridge Foundation Inc., Mario DiCarlo'48, and alumni and friends, the Alpha Tau Gamma Fred P. Jeffrey Professorship and Directorship of the Stockbridge School of Agriculture is named for the School’s Director from 1954 to 1971.

The Professorship

This Professorship is held by the Director of the Stockbridge School of Agriculture. William Mitchell, a UMass alumnus and former Stockbridge teacher was appointed to the position in June of 2008. This endowed fund supports his salary for the position and equipment needs, ensuring the continued success of the Stockbridge School of Agriculture.

Walter Raleigh Amesbury, Jr. and Cecile Dudley Amesbury Professorship for Teaching and Research of the Polish Language, Literature and Culture

Walter Raleigh Amesbury, Jr. and Cecile Dudley Amesbury

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

Donors: The late Walter Raleigh Amesbury, Jr. and Cecile Dudley Amesbury, Friends

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Walter Raleigh Amesbury, Jr. was a retired economist from Philadelphia, whose heritage traces back to the 16th-century English explorer, wanted to honor his late wife, Cecile Dudley Amesbury, a descendent of one of the oldest royal families in Krakow, Poland. After he passed away, a longtime friend of the Amesburys suggested to his niece that UMass Amherst might be the place to fulfill her uncle's wish. Quoting his niece, "My uncle wanted to honor his wife. This way, it honors him as well."

The Professorship

This professorship focuses on teaching and research on Polish language, literature, and culture, helping to broaden the range of Polish-related education and cultural programs offered by the campus and enabling the entire campus to broaden its understanding of the richness of Polish culture. Professor Robert A. Rothstein was appointed to the position in the summer of 2006. Professor Rothstein has long served as the campus’s pre-eminent Slavic linguistic authority, scholar and teacher. As the Amesbury Professor, Rothstein continues to explore questions of Polish language and folklore; organize conferences and seminars and expand course offerings on Polish language, literature, and culture; and direct outreach programs for the local Polish-American community.

Armstrong Professional Development Professorship

John A. and Elizabeth Armstrong

College of Engineering

Donors: John A. and Elizabeth Armstrong, Friends

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John Armstrong worked for IBM Corporation from 1963 until his retirement in 1993. He became IBM Director of Research in 1986, IBM Vice President for Science and Technology in 1987, and a member of the Corporate Management Board in 1989. He is the author or co-author of more than 60 papers on nuclear resonance, nonlinear optics, photon statistics of lasers, the management of research in industry, and science and technology policy issues. John Armstrong has served as a presidential appointee as a member of the National Science Board; is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and is a former chair of the Governing Board of the American Institute of Physics. Through his membership on the Dean's Advisory Council in the College of Engineering Advisory Board, he became committed to establishing a professional development professorship at UMass Amherst to support junior faculty in the College. John, who is a member of the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees and Vice President of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation, and his wife Elizabeth, have also endowed a scholarship in engineering geared towards undergraduate research. They chose to retire to Amherst because it is midway between their farm in Vermont, and family in Boston and New York.

The Professorship

This professorship provides funding for and supports professional development of a junior faculty member who is at the beginning of his or her career and has demonstrated substantial achievement and great promise in a specific area of teaching and research. Professor David J. McLaughlin, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, has been the first incumbent since February 2002. McLaughlin is Director of CASA, the Engineering Research Center for Collaborative Adaptive Sensing of the Atmosphere, whose mission is to bring together a multidisciplinary group of engineers, computer scientists, meteorologists, sociologists, graduate and undergraduate students, and industry and government representatives to conduct fundamental research, develop enabling technology, and deploy prototype engineering systems based on a new paradigm: Distributed Collaborative Adaptive Sensing (DCAS) networks.

Wilmer D. Barrett Professorship

Wilmer D. Barrett

College of Natural Sciences

Donor: The late Wilmer D. Barrett, BS '34, Microbiology

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Wilmer Barrett was the founder and owner of several private companies. One of Mr. Barrett's sons, Robert Barrett, who graduated from UMass Amherst in 1964, is the President of Polytainers, one of the largest manufacturers of plastic food containers in North America. Another son, W. David Barrett, also graduated from UMass Amherst in 1960 and is real estate developer.

The Professorship

Professor Murugappan Muthukumar, Department of Polymer Science and Engineering, has been the incumbent since February 2000. His current research interests are polymer crystallization, polyelectrolyte physics, and translocation of DNA and proteins through protein channels and nanopores. His honors include Adjunct Associate Editor for Physical Review Letters; Ford High Polymer Physics Prize, American Physical Society; Distinguished Faculty Lecturer, UMass Amherst Chancellor's Medal; Alfred P. Sloan Research Fellow; and Fellow of American Physical Society.

Philip Bezanson Chair in Music

Professor Jon Humphrey

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

University-Sponsored Chair

George David Birkhoff Chair in Mathematics

Professor William H. Meeks, III

College of Natural Sciences

University-Sponsored Chair

Fergus M. Clydesdale Professorship in Food Science

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College of Natural Sciences

Donors: Members of the Food Science Advisory Board and Food Science alumni

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An anonymous colleague of Professor Fergus "Ferg" Clydesdale from the food industry wished to honor Professor Clydesdale, one of the most renowned food scientists in the world, by starting a professorship endowment fund in his name within the Department of Food Science. Members of the Food Science Advisory Board generously supported the endowment through their own personal gifts and by raising additional funds from food science alumni and companies in the food industry.

The Professorship

This professorship provides funding for an outstanding, active scholar in the field who is able to lead by the example of his or her teaching as well as scholarship and administrative skills. The endowment provides support for research costs associated with the incumbent's laboratory and for fellowships for promising students in the program, known as Clydesdale Fellows. Professor Eric A. Decker, Department of Food Sciences, has been the incumbent since 2002. His current research interests include strategies to inhibit lipid oxidation, antioxidants, bioactive lipids, food lipid bioavailability, and seafood/muscle biochemistry. His honors include election as Secretary and Chair, Food Chemistry Division, Institute of Food Technologists; Guest Professor, Huazhong Agricultural University, China; Malcolm Trout Visiting Scholar, Michigan State University; Outstanding Advising Award, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Silvio O. Conte Distinguished Professorship

Professor Thomas Russell

College of Natural Sciences

University-Sponsored Professorship

T.W. Copeland Professor of Literary History

Professor Arthur F. Kinney

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

University-Sponsored Professorship

Feinberg Professorship in History

Kenneth R. Feinberg

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

Donor: Kenneth R. Feinberg, BA '67, History

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Kenneth Feinberg is owner and a partner in the Washington, D.C. law firm, The Feinberg Group, LLP, and is a specialist in alternative dispute resolution. He served as Special Master of the September 11 Victim Compensation Fund from November 2001 to November 2004. Mr. Feinberg has served as a court-appointed special settlement master in major litigation involving the Agent Orange product liability litigation. He was one of three arbitrators who determined fair market value for the Zapruder film of the Kennedy assassination and one of two arbitrators to determine the allocation of legal fees in the Holocaust slave labor litigation. He served as Chief of Staff to U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy from 1978 to 1980 and was named Lawyer of the Year in 2004 by the National Law Journal. He is a Director of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation.

The Professorship

This endowment promotes the study of public policy issues and supports an integrative program that cuts across many different disciplines, departments, and schools/colleges at UMass Amherst to broaden awareness of the importance of the past to the present and the future. In the fall of 2004, the Department of History inaugurated the Feinberg Family Distinguished Lectureship with a semester-long, campus-wide series of events marking the 50th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Brown v. Board of Education, including three lectures that examined the impact of the Supreme Court's momentous decision declaring racial segregation in public schools unlawful, and overturning the doctrine of 'separate but equal'. The lectures were given by Duke University History professor Charles Payne, former U.S. Attorney General Nicholas Katzenbach, and Columbia Law Professor and Nation columnist Patricia Williams.

Flavin Chair in Entrepreneurial Studies

John P. Flavin

Isenberg School of Management

Donor: John P. Flavin, BBA '59, Accounting and Information Systems

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John "Jack" Flavin is Chairman of Flavin, Blake & Co., an investment management company. From 1983 to 2000 he was owner and President and then Chairman of Triangle Supply Company, Inc. He was the National Chair of Campaign UMass and was Co-Chair of the Isenberg School of Management's building fund, personally giving the funds to renovate a major auditorium in the School which is now named the Flavin Family Auditorium. In addition, Mr. Flavin has also endowed the Flavin Fellowships and the Flavin Service Fund. Jack Flavin established this chair in memory of his brother, Joseph Flavin '57, former Chairman of the Singer Corporation, who was also a graduate of the Isenberg School of Management.

The Chair

This chair was founded to promote the teaching of entrepreneurial skills—risk assessment and management, small business capitalization and business plan writing. Visiting Assistant Professor James Marshall Theroux has held The Flavin Family Chair since 1997. Professor Theroux teaches case-based courses to undergraduate and graduate students which focus on risk assessment. He also teaches a course that helps student inventors launch their products and services in the marketplace and a practicum in which teams of students help solve problems at small businesses in Western Massachusetts. His research interest is entrepreneurship and his honors include the Appel Award for Outstanding Contributions to Entrepreneurship Education, Babson Entrepreneurship Program; Best New Online Teaching Method, U.S. Distance Learning Association; and Innovative Pedagogy of the Year, U.S. Small Business and Entrepreneurship Association.

Frederick J. Francis Chair

Frederick J. Francis

College of Natural Sciences

Donor: Frederick J. Francis, Ph.D. '54, Food Science

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Frederick "Jack" Francis is a Professor Emeritus in the Department of Food Science at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. He has received numerous professional awards, including: Carl R. Fellers Award; Distinguished Scientist; Outstanding Scientist, Council for Agricultural Science and Technology; Distinguished Service Medal, American Association of Foodservice Equipment Manufacturers; and the Citation of Excellence from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. In establishing this chair, Jack Francis wanted to help fulfill the strategic plans of the Department of Food Science that are consistent with campus, national, and international needs.

The Chair

Assistant Professor Yeonhwa Park was named as the first incumbent in 2004. During her Ph.D. and postdoctoral work, her primary research focus was related to the discovery of the activities of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) as well as its mechanisms, especially with regard to body fat regulation. Her research interests are the continuation of her CLA research and searches for biologically active compounds from natural or dietary sources. Dr. Park finished received the 2003 American Oil Chemists Society Young Scientist Research Award.

Dr. Constantine J. Gilgut Professorship in Plant Biology

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College of Natural Sciences

Donors: Patricia A. (Gilgut) Johnson, BA '64, Economics and the late Weldon H. Johnson, Friend

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Patricia "Patty" Johnson is the daughter of the late Professor Constantine "Connie" J. Gilgut who a Professor Emeritus of UMass Amherst and was also was a graduate of the campus (BS '31, MS '34). Patty's late husband, Weldon Johnson, was a Senior Vice President at Coca-Cola when he retired in 1997 after a 32 year career at Coca-Cola. Together, they decided to endow the Constantine J. Gilgut Professorship in Plant Biology to honor her father's nearly 50 years of teaching, research and outreach at UMass Amherst. Professor Gilgut was a renowned expert in the control of crop diseases.

The Professorship

This professorship is to be occupied by the Director of the Plant Biology Program and is to be an outstanding, active scholar in the field who is able to lead by the example of his or her teaching as well as scholarship and administrative skills. The endowment supports research costs associated with the incumbent's laboratory and provides support for promising students in the program, known as Gilgut Fellows. Professor Emeritus Peter K. Hepler has been the first incumbent since being appointed in 1998. His research interests center around the role of calcium, membranes and the cytoskeleton in cell division and development. His awards include Honorary Professorship, He Bei Teachers' University, ShiJia Zhuang, PRC; Senior Fulbright Fellowship, Australia/American Education Fund, Canberra, Australia; and Chancellor's Medal for Distinguished Scholarship, University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Robert L. Gluckstern Distinguished Professorship in Physics

Steven M. Gluckstern

College of Natural Sciences

Donor: Steven M. Gluckstern, Ph.D. '74, Education

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Steven Gluckstern is founder of and general partner in Azimuth Alternative Assets LLC, which provides business support and other services to entities providing investment advisory and management services. He was formerly Chairman of Zurich Reinsurance and CEO of Capital Z Partners (asset manager of alternative investment pools). His father, Robert Gluckstern, was a physics professor, department head, Associate Provost, then Provost and Vice Chancellor at UMass Amherst. His mother, Norma Gluckstern, is a UMass Amherst graduate. Steven Gluckstern has endowed two professorships at UMass Amherst, one in Education Policy and Reform to honor his mentor, Dwight Allen, and this one in Physics to honor his father whom he attributes as being the most important influence on his life and the success he enjoys today.

The Professorship

It is widely recognized and appreciated that the foundation of the Physics Department at the University of Massachusetts Amherst rests on the vision of Robert L. Gluckstern. This professorship provides for the opportunity for enhanced stature not only in fields such as High Energy/Nuclear Physics and Condensed Matter Physics that were hallmarks of the Gluckstern era, but in exciting new areas, such as Nanotechnology and Computational Physics. This professorship will support the research program of an outstanding member of the Physics Department and will be awarded to an individual with a high quality scientific program who has also played, or will play, a key role in providing leadership in the scientific direction of the Physics Department. It may be used to help recruit a key new individual to the Department, or to recognize the accomplishments of a distinguished member of the faculty.

Charles A. Goessmann Chair in Chemistry

Professor Vincent Rotello

College of Natural Sciences

University-Sponsored Chair

Dev V. Gupta Professorship

Dev V. Gupta

College of Engineering

Donor: Dev V. Gupta, Ph.D. '77, Electrical Engineering

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Dev Gupta has built a reputation as an expert in broadband and network access infrastructure technology. His company, NewLANS, is working on the development of high speed wireless data transmission. Previously he founded Narad Networks, a privately held provider of broadband IP infrastructure services. Before founding Narad he worked for Integrated Network Corporation, Consumers Products Laboratory, and Bell Laboratories. Gupta has formed two other companies, Dagaz Technologies and MaxComm Technologies, both of which were sold to Cisco Systems. Dr. Gupta is a Director of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation. He is also a charter member of Tie-Atlantic 2000, an organization of Indian business executives. His son, Divi, graduated from UMass Amherst with a B.S. in electrical engineering in 2000. Quoting Dr. Gupta "In a strong economy, the talent in our leading academic faculties may be tempted to leave the classroom to work in industry. My hope is that establishing this professorship will provide an incentive to keep these talented individuals in the classroom, so that future generations can benefit from their expertise."

The Professorship

This professorship provides funding for a position in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department and is awarded to a recognized scholar who has demonstrated exceptional teaching and research skills and has achieved distinction in the field of Communications and Communications Theory.

Seedworks Nursing Professorship for Social Justice

Susan Hagedorn

School of Nursing

Donor: Susan Hagedorn, BS ’77 Nursing

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Dr. Susan Hagedorn has received advanced degrees and certifications, including a doctorate from the University of Colorado, and has been widely published and has contributed to the topics of nursing teaching, practice, theory, and policy initiatives. Hagedorn is an associate professor at the University of Colorado and also directs its Partnership in Prevention program. Her many accomplishments include being a pediatric and women’s health practitioner who serves at risk youth and women; practicing at residential treatment programs; operating a mentor program for at-risk middle school students; and coordinating a health clinic for women and children living in a safe house.

The Professorship

The Professorship will provide leadership in addressing social justice issues in health care and will work within the School of Nursing’s research, teaching and practice agenda. The faculty position will mandate the context of social justice be front-and-center in nursing curriculum and will serve as a mentor for students who will integrate nursing with implementing social change. These students will see their patients in a broad way, and the health of individuals in the community will benefit.

Leonard J. Horwitz Professorship in Latin American Politics and Studies

Leonard J. Horwitz

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Donor: Leonard J. Horwitz, BA '49, History

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Through a bequest, Leonard "Len" Horwitz established the Leonard J. Horwitz Professorship in Latin American Politics and Studies. Mr. Horwitz was a retired Foreign Service Officer serving as program officer for USAID in Chile, Director of USAID Mission in Uruguay, and Deputy Director of Office of Panamanian Affairs, where he took part in Panama Canal Treaty negotiations. He joined Price Waterhouse in 1979 and worked there until his passing in October 1995. Through his bequest, Mr. Horwitz wanted to support study of Latin America, a region in which he had built his career, both in government and as a consultant to public and private sector organizations.

The Professorship

Professor of Political Science, Howard Wiarda, was named the first Horwitz Professor in 1998. His work focused on the burgeoning region of Latin America and its growing political, economic, cultural, and social influence on the U.S. He retired from UMass Amherst in the spring of 2003 after 38 years as a member of the faculty. His successor as the Horwitz Professor, Sonia Alvarez, joined the faculty in the fall of 2005. Professor Alvarez is a leading scholar of women's movements in Latin America, and is widely recognized as one of the most prominent international scholars in the field of international feminism. Professor Alvarez was a Fulbright Scholar at the University of Campinas in San Paolo, Brazil, and a Ford Foundation program officer in Brazil. Alvarez is President of the Latin American Studies Association, a scholarly organization with more that 5,000 members.

Eugene M. and Ronnie Isenberg Professorship in Integrative Studies

Eugene M. and Ronnie F. Isenberg

Isenberg School of Management

Donors: Eugene M. Isenberg, BA '50, Economics and Ronnie F. Isenberg, Friend

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Eugene "Gene" Isenberg became the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the predecessor to Nabors Industries Ltd. in 1987. After reorganizing the company and leading its emergence from restructuring, he oversaw the growth of the company into an S&P 500 Index member. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the American Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers. He is also a member of the National Petroleum Council, which advises the US Department of Energy. He spent the first thirteen years of his career in various management positions with Exxon Corporation. The Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is named in recognition of his and Ronnie's major contributions towards new facilities, funding of scholarships, and the endowment of three professorships. Gene Isenberg is the President of the Board of Directors of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation.

The Professorship

This professorship was the first established by the Isenbergs with the vision of creating three professorships—one in management, one in engineering, and one in the natural sciences—to develop collaborative teaching and research programs focused on technology innovation driven by interdisciplinary work in these areas. Professor Soren Bisgaard was named as the first incumbent in September 2002. His research interests are technology management, innovation, Six Sigma, statistics, experimental design, process monitoring. His awards include the Box Medal Award, European Network for Business and Industrial Statistics; the Shewhart Medal and William G. Hunter Award, American Society for Quality; and the Literati Club Award for Excellence in Publications, MCB University Press, UK.

Ronnie and Eugene M. Isenberg Professorship in Engineering

Eugene M. and Ronnie F. Isenberg

College of Engineering

Donors: Eugene M. Isenberg, BA '50, Economics and Ronnie F. Isenberg, Friend

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Eugene "Gene" Isenberg became the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the predecessor to Nabors Industries Ltd. in 1987. After reorganizing the company and leading its emergence from restructuring, he oversaw the growth of the company into an S&P 500 Index member. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the American Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers. He is also a member of the National Petroleum Council, which advises the US Department of Energy. He spent the first thirteen years of his career in various management positions with Exxon Corporation. The Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is named in recognition of his and Ronnie's major contributions towards new facilities, funding of scholarships, and the endowment of three professorships. Gene Isenberg is the President of the Board of Directors of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation.

The Professorship

This professorship is the second established by the Isenbergs with the vision of creating three professorships—one in management, one in engineering, and one in the natural sciences—to develop collaborative teaching and research programs focused on technology innovation driven by interdisciplinary work in these areas. Professor Michael F. Malone was named as the first incumbent in February 2003 when he was the Department Head of Chemical Engineering. He was subsequently named Dean of the College of Engineering in August 2004. His research and teaching interests are conceptual design, process economics and optimization, non-ideal and reactive distillation, integration of engineering and business, and innovation. Some of his awards are the Excellence in Process Development Research Award, AIChE Process Development Division; a Samuel F. Conti Faculty Fellowship, UMass Amherst; and the Computing in Chemical Engineering Award (with M. F. Doherty) AIChE CAST Division.

Eugene M. and Ronnie Isenberg Professorship in Integrative Environmental Science

Eugene M. and Ronnie F. Isenberg

College of Natural Sciences

Donors: Eugene M. Isenberg, BA '50, Economics and Ronnie F. Isenberg, Friend

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Eugene "Gene" Isenberg became the Chairman of the Board of Directors and CEO of the predecessor to Nabors Industries Ltd. in 1987. After reorganizing the company and leading its emergence from restructuring, he oversaw the growth of the company into an S&P 500 Index member. He is a member of the Board of Governors of the American Stock Exchange and the National Association of Securities Dealers. He is also a member of the National Petroleum Council, which advises the US Department of Energy. He spent the first thirteen years of his career in various management positions with Exxon Corporation. The Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst is named in recognition of his and Ronnie's major contributions towards new facilities, funding of scholarships, and the endowment of three professorships. Gene Isenberg is the President of the Board of Directors of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation.

The Professorship

This professorship completes the Isenbergs vision of creating three professorships—one in management, one in engineering, and one in the natural sciences—to develop collaborative teaching and research programs focused on technology innovation driven by interdisciplinary work in these areas. The endowment will be used to support the research, teaching, and programs of the professorship. Uses may include salary, special research projects, visiting faculty, recruitment of new distinguished faculty, curriculum development, interdisciplinary symposia, and other collaborative activities that further the development of integrative studies as a vital component of educating students and developing research on a systematic understanding of the process and methods for innovation in science, engineering, and management.

MA Arborists Association Professorship in Commercial Arboriculture

MA Arborists Association

College of Natural Sciences

Donor: Massachusetts Arborists Association

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The Massachusetts Arborists Association (MAA) is a professional trade organization that serves the commercial arboriculture industry. The MAA advances the goals of its members through education, research support, certification and promotion of the value of arboriculture to the public. Founded in the late 1930s by leading tree care proponents, the MAA is proud to be one of the oldest trade associations in the nation. The MAA's membership now includes over 850 of the state's leading arborists. The endowment was created by the MAA to support the teaching, research and outreach of a faculty member specializing in the field of commercial arboriculture.

The Professorship

Assistant Professor of Commercial Arboriculture Brian C.P. Kane is the first incumbent of the professorship having joined the faculty in the fall of 2004. His primary interests and current projects include tree risk and structure analysis—the risk of failure from structural defects and understanding how arboriculture practices such as pruning reduce the risk of failure; arboriculture techniques—understanding rigging loads and the stresses they cause on trees, understanding efficacy of tree support systems and how well they reduce risk of stem or branch failure, and measuring static and kinetic friction coefficients for arborist ropes; and comparing tree cover and maintenance practices from different elementary school grounds in Virginia. Among others, he is a member of the International Society of Arboriculture; the ISA Educational Goods & Services Committee; and the Editorial Board, Journal of Arboriculture. For more information on Professor Kane, please visit .

Mulatuli (Edward Douwse Dekker) Chair of Dutch Culture, Language and Literature

Professor Emeritus E.M. Beekman

College of Humanities and Fine Arts

University-Sponsored Chair

Terrence Murray Commonwealth Honors College Professorship

Terrence Murray

Commonwealth Honors College

Donor: Terrence Murray, Friend

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Retired Chairman and CEO of FleetBoston Financial Corporation, Mr. Murray began his career in banking via the real estate business. His experience in real estate gave him the marketability to be hired by Industrial National, as a real estate loan officer. Eventually Industrial National became Fleet Financial Group, where he learned banking "from the ground up" over a career span of approximately 40 years. Mr. Murray earned recognition as the most powerful banker in New England and was credited with leading the transformation of a small Rhode Island bank into one of the nation's largest bank holding companies. Quoting Mr. Murray, "The honors program opens the door of opportunity to UMass Amherst students to achieve the highest level of intellectual growth. The key to the success of the honors program is top-notch faculty."

The Professorship

This professorship will be awarded for a two-three year term on a competitive basis to outstanding faculty with the express purpose of creating or enhancing the honors experience in that faculty member's discipline. It will create a continually renewed team of stellar faculty to develop innovative coursework and programs. Professor of Anthropology Arthur Keene was appointed as the first incumbent in February 2005. He has extensive experience in developing innovative curriculum at both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Professor Keene will spend his first year shaping a two-semester course, which will teach students how to conduct ethnographic research. He will also be adapting a community organizing class from the Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, which will serve as a culminating course for students in Commonwealth College's Citizen Scholarship Program, a four-semester academic service learning program which he founded and co-directs. His current research interests focus on issues of community and social justice.

Jerome M. Paros Professorship in Measurement Sciences

Jerome M. Paros

College of Engineering and College of Natural Sciences

Donor: Jerome M. Paros, BS '60 Physics

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Jerome M. Paros is a leader in the field of measurement sciences. He holds over 20 patents and has authored many articles in the instrumentation field. Mr. Paros is the founder of Paroscientific, Inc. and related companies that manufacture sensors to measure pressure, acceleration, temperature, weight, and other parameters based on the quartz crystal resonator technology that he developed. High-accuracy, broadband, quartz pressure transducers are the most important sensors used in many atmospheric, oceanic, and hydrologic applications because they permit the measurement of phenomena having great spatial and temporal variability. Advances in data acquisition, communications, and computational analysis enable the integration of broadband sensors into powerful, multi-functional networks. These sensor networks will improve the measurements of geophysical phenomena such as tsunamis, and enhance our ability to understand the complex earth and ocean processes that produce climate change.

The Professorship

This professorship fosters interdisciplinary research involving the development and use of high bandwidth sensors, high-performance communication networks, and new data analysis and interpretation tools to provide an unprecedented understanding of the environment, including weather, air and groundwater transport. Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Andreas Muschinski, was appointed to the position in the spring of 2007 and will combine first-principle sensor physics with the development of in situ and remote sensor networks to analyze turbulent dynamics in the lower atmosphere. He has established an active and well-funded research program in atmospheric sensing that combines advanced measurement science and technology and fundamental atmospheric physics. His work has been published in the Journal of Atmospheric and Oceanic Technology, theInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Sensors Journal and Meteorologische Zeitschrift.

Michael and Cheryl Philipp Distinguished Professorship in Finance

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Isenberg School of Management

Donors: Michael G. Philipp BA '75 Art, MBA '82 Business Administration and Cheryl Philipp, BFA '76 Art Education

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Michael "Mike" Philipp began his career with Goldman Sachs, where he eventually headed the firm's global securities financing group. In 1990, he joined Merrill Lynch, becoming Vice President of International Fixed-income and Derivatives Sales. In 1995, he went to Deutsche Morgan Grenfell in London. At Deutsche Bank AG, Mike was a board member, Chairman and CEO of Deutsche Asset Management, and head of global equities, global markets sales, and global futures and options. Currently, he is Chairman and CEO of CSFB Europe, a leading global investment bank serving institutional, corporate, government, and high net worth clients.

The Professorship

This professorship is awarded to a recognized scholar in the area of global financial markets who is well known in the academic and practitioner community. Professor Thomas R. Schneeweis was appointed as the first incumbent in November 2001. He has been the Director of the Center for International Securities and Derivative Markets since its establishment in 1998. The Center brings unique competitive advantages to the Isenberg School and the University of Massachusetts Amherst. It has achieved national and international stature and is a magnet for dozens of exceptional students and faculty members. The Center has also received substantial support from leading investment houses and graduates. Professor Schneeweis is editor of the Journal of Alternative Investments.

Rudd Family Foundation Chair in Environmental Psychology

Andrew T. and Virginia Rudd

College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Donors: Andrew T. and Virginia Rudd, Parents

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Andrew Rudd is Chairman and CEO of Advisor Software, Inc., a market leader in providing solutions which enable financial institutions and advisors to improve the quality and delivery of investment advice, which he founded in 1995. He is also the founder and former Chairman and CEO of Barra (now MSCI Barra) where he is currently Senior Advisory Director. From 1973–1982, Andrew Rudd was a Professor of Finance and Operations Research at Cornell University. He gained recognition as the co-author of Modern Portfolio Theory: the Principles of Investment Management (1982) and of Option Pricing (1983); and has written numerous journal articles, monographs and research papers on a wide range of domestic and international investment practices and theories. Andrew and Virginia Rudd made possible the creation of Rudd Field, the state-of-the-art soccer facility at UMass Amherst. Andrew Rudd is a Director of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation. Quoting the Rudds, "Our goal is that the professorship should act as a catalyst in focusing academic research on the emotional and psychological trauma often experienced by adoptees. Eventually, we hope research might be able to suggest potential avenues toward a better understanding of adoption issues."

The Chair

This chair will attract a pre-eminent international scholar to build a high-profile research program and lecture series to rapidly advance the study of adoption and play a significant role in advancing public policy in the field. The endowment will also provide research support and fund an annual lecture or seminar series in the scholar's field. The incumbent will be a scholar with expertise in the study of adoption and will focus on the complex issues surrounding adoption. The chair will be located within the Child, Adolescent and Family concentration in the clinical division of the Department of Psychology and will also be affiliated with the Center for Research on Families based in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences.

John F. Smith, Jr. Memorial Professorship in Operations Management

John F. Smith, Jr.

Isenberg School of Management

Donor: John F. Smith, Jr., BBA '60, Business Administration

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John "Jack" Smith, Jr. joined General Motors in 1961 at the Fisher Body facility in Framingham, MA. He became General Motors CEO and President in 1992 and served as President until 1998 and CEO until 2000. He served as Chairman of the Board of Directors from 1996 until his retirement in May 2003. A member of Delta Airline's Board of Directors since 2000, Mr. Smith became the non-executive Chairman in April 2004. Jack Smith established this professorship in honor and memory of his father, who graduated from Stockbridge College at UMass Amherst in 1929.

The Professorship

This professorship promotes teaching and research in Operations Management, which aims to increase productivity and quality through the coordinated management of raw materials, scheduling, man-machine manufacturing relationships, work group effectiveness, inventory, and distribution. Professor Anna Nagurney was appointed as the first incumbent in 1998 and is internationally renowned for creating algorithms and computer models that optimize performance in transportation networks, regional economies, and financial markets. Professor Nagurney's most recent honors include a Radcliffe Institute Fellowship, Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, Harvard University; College Outstanding Research Award, Isenberg School of Management, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Rockefeller Foundation Bellagio Center Grant; and two AT&T Industrial Ecology Faculty Fellowships.

Earl W. Stafford Professorship in Entrepreneurial Studies

Earl W. Stafford

Campus-wide

Donor: Earl W. Stafford, BBA '76, General Business Finance

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Earl W. Stafford is Chairman and CEO of Universal Systems and Technology (UNITECH), a company he founded in 1988. UNITECH provides telecommunications systems integration for engineering, business support systems, and simulation and training services, serving federal, state, local, and commercial customers. After graduating from UMass Amherst, Mr. Stafford served 20 years as an officer in the U.S. Air Force. He serves on the board of directors of the Air Traffic Controllers Association; the INOVA Health Systems Foundation; and is a Director of the University of Massachusetts Amherst Foundation.

The Professorship

This professorship was created to establish a campus-wide, distinguished, term professorship in entrepreneurship and will be awarded for a period of five years to a distinguished and promising UMass Amherst faculty member whose scholarly pursuits are related to entrepreneurship, to be chosen on academic distinction and the expectations that the professorship will enable the holder to make a major contribution to the growth of the campus's programs related to entrepreneurship in the for profit and not for profit sectors. The professorship may hold an appointment in any of UMass Amherst's schools, colleges, or institutes concerned with any significant aspect of entrepreneurship.

Ray Ethan Torrey Professor of Biology

Professor Emeritus Peter K. Hepler

College of Natural Sciences

University-Sponsored Professorship

University Chair in Peace Psychology

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College of Social and Behavioral Sciences

Donors: Anonymous

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The anonymous donors hold doctorates in psychology and have been educators and committed peace activists for all their lives. They endowed the chair to support a new faculty position in peace psychology and underwrite the costs related to the creation of a doctoral concentration in peace psychology, both aimed at exploring the conditions that lead people to act either violently or cooperatively, and at ways to prevent violence and promote cooperation and peace.

The Chair

Professor Ervin Staub was named the first director of the program in 2002. He is internationally recognized for his research on violence and aggression, including genocide, mass killing, youth violence, and bullying; prevention of group violence; healing and reconciliation; altruism and helping behavior; raising caring and non-violent children; and the psychology of goodness and evil. He wrote The Roots of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and other Group Violence, and a forthcoming book will be titled A Brighter Future: Raising Caring and Nonviolent Children. Professor Staub is the 1990 recipient of the Otto Klineberg Intercultural and International Prize of the Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues. He is past president of both the Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict and Violence of the Peace Psychology Division of the American Psychological Association (1999-2000), and the International Society for Political Psychology (2000-2001).

Gilbert Woodside Chair in Zoology

Professor Christopher Woodcock

College of Natural Sciences

University-Sponsored Chair