Twelve faculty members were given the emeritus title by the Regents at their September meeting. They are:
Allan R. Beaudoin, professor
of anatomy and cell biology
Beaudoin, who joined the faculty in 1961, conducted his research in experimental teratology and taught medical histology and embryology. “On several occasions, Prof. Beaudoin was also called upon to serve in departmental administrative posts, including acting chair of the department (1977–78) and interim chair (1986–89),” the Regents said. “His professional contributions have been well recognized locally and nationally. He has served on many national panels and review groups, and has been elected to many offices of the Teratology Society, including president in 1978–79.”
LeVerne S. Collet, professor of education
Collet came to the U-M in 1968 and has taught courses in research design, measurement, and program evaluation. “He provided extensive assistance to students and colleagues in designing research methodologies and conducting empirical research and field evaluations of educational programs,” the Regents said. “Prof. Collet has also been very active in professional organizations, including the Association for Supervision and Curriculum and the National Council on Measurement in Education and has regularly presented papers at the annual meetings of the American Educational Research Association.”
Robert G. Craig, the Marcus L. Ward Professor of Dentistry
Craig, who joined the faculty in 1957, “has distinguished himself as a dental scholar, researcher, administrator and teacher who has had a direct impact on the practice of dentistry worldwide,” the Regents noted. “His main research interests include biocompatibility of materials, properties of polymers (both elastomers and composites), surface effects of materials, and experimental stress analysis.” Among his honors are the Wilmer Souder Award in Dental Materials and the Clemson Award for Basic Research in Biomaterials. He was named the Marcus L. Ward Professor of Dentistry in 1990.
Whitmore Gray, professor of law
Gray joined the faculty in 1960 and his work has focused on contract law, alternate dispute resolution and comparative law. “He was an early leader in teaching and writing about alternate dispute resolution. His work in comparative law has helped to inform domestic audiences about the law of such countries as Russia, Japan and China, and also has helped to inform audiences in many other countries about the law of the United States. Prof. Gray’s teaching is noteworthy for the remarkable opportunities for individual student work and attention to his students that he has provided,” the Regents said.
Keith S. Henley, professor of internal medicine
Henley came to the U-M in 1954 and his “pioneering work in the field of clinical enzymology resulted in the identification of a marker for liver damage that is still widely used in clinical practice to evaluate hepatocellular injury,” the Regents said.
“His study on the ammoniagenesis in the mitochondria of cirrhotic liver is considered a landmark paper, and his work on the effect of ethanol on rat liver transaminase has helped elucidate the intracellular biochemical pathway by which ethanol produces damage to the liver. He has also pioneered and developed one of the best liver transplant programs in the United States.”
Jan Kmenta, professor of economics and of statistics
Kmenta, who joined the U-M in 1973, is considered “one of the foremost econometric theorists in the world,” the Regents said. “He has published the definitive textbook on the subject, Elements of Econometrics, in 1971. The second edition, published in 1986, continues to be widely used in graduate-level courses and to be cited as the authoritative source for econometric methodology. He is best known for his detailed studies of the properties of various econometric estimators; these include several series of papers reporting the results of his substantial research on seemingly unrelated regressions, estimation with missing observations, and estimation of production functions.”
Dale L. Oxender, professor of biological chemistry
Oxender, who joined the faculty in 1958, “has been vigorous in research and teaching, has contributed heavily to the present strength of the Department of Biological Chemistry, and is known internationally for his innovative research contributions in the areas of biochemistry of proteins, bacterial cell transport, and genetics,” the Regents said. “Throughout his distinguished career, he has been dedicated both to being a conscientious and effective teacher and to improving the state of health and education of society.”
Donald J. Portman, professor of atmospheric, oceanic and space sciences
Portman, who joined the U-M in 1956, is “a founding member of the Department of Meteorology and Oceanography (now Atmospheric, Oceanic, and Space Sciences) and established one of the first courses in the field of micro meteorology, where he demonstrated the need to compare theory with measurement through simple yet sophisticated experiments,” the Regents said. “Many of the discipline’s current leaders were students in those early courses. In his weather and climate course, he introduced non-science majors to the underlying scientific principles that control the atmosphere, stressing the insight that can be gained from simple observations.”
John H. Romani, professor of public health administration
Romani joined the U-M in 1961 and “throughout most of his tenure, he was one of the principal academic resources in the area of public health administration in the School of Public Health,” the Regents noted. He served as assistant dean (1962–66) and associate dean (1966–69). He was associate vice president for academic affairs in 1971–75 and became chair of the Department of Health Planning and Administration (later renamed the Department of Health Policy and Administration). He served in that role for five years, and then again as interim chair in 1991.
Robert L. Shaffer, the Lewis E. Wehmeyer and Elaine Prince Wehmeyer Professor of Fungal Taxonomy and curator of fungi
Shaffer, who joined the U-M in 1960, served as curator of fungi and director (1975–86) at the Herbarium. “During his tenure as director, the Herbarium received a series of curatorial grants from the National Science Foundation worth over $1 million,” the Regents said. “These grants enabled the Herbarium to purchase much-needed equipment and achieve new levels of curatorial excellence. In the area of research, Prof. Shaffer has centered on ‘Russula,’ a large and difficult genus of fleshy fungi, and through a series of publications he has established himself as a leading expert in the systematics of Russula.”
Mary Ann P. Swain, professor of nursing
Swain, who served as associate vice president for academic affairs, retired in August to become provost at the State University of New York at Binghamton. She joined the School of Nursing in 1970 and served as interim vice president for student services in 1990–92, interim director of the Affirmative Action Office in 1988–89 and interim co-director of personnel in 1986–88. She was appointed associate vice president for academic affairs in 1983.
Richard G. Teske, professor of astronomy
Teske, who joined the faculty in 1960, was principal investigator for a solar X-ray detector flown on the Third Orbiting Solar Observatory, one of the earliest space experiments to be launched by an American university, the Regents said. “After making strong contributions to solar and coronal physics, Prof. Teske switched to the study of supernova remnants in 1984, where he drew upon his knowledge of coronal X-rays to make original contributions to research on the physics of these objects.” In 1987–92 he was interim director and then director of the Michigan-Dartmouth-M.I.T. Observatory at Kitt Peak in Arizona.
