The Board of Regents also took the following actions May 16.
Regents increase approval threshold for construction, renovation projects
The Board of Regents approved a request to increase the threshold for obtaining board approval for new construction and renovation projects from $3 million to $5 million, as most of the approved capital projects less than $5 million during the last five years were for routine and necessary infrastructure and maintenance projects. Projects from $500,000 up to $5 million will be reported monthly to the board as an informational item. University officials say the increased threshold will improve efficiency and better align U-M with the approval thresholds for many of the university’s public and private peer institutions.
— Don Jordan, Public Affairs
Academic calendar set for 2026-27
The 2026-27 academic calendar will begin prior to Labor Day, on Aug. 31, 2026, which provides a one-week break between the end of the summer term and the start of fall term. It also includes a fall break Oct. 19-20 and no classes Nov. 25, the day before Thanksgiving. Classes will end Dec. 11, and exams will end Dec. 18. The winter term will start Jan. 13, 2027. This calendar reflects the recent move to starting classes on the first Wednesday after the first Thursday in January. Spring break will begin March 6 with classes resuming March 15. Winter term classes will end April 27, and exams will end May 6. Juneteenth, which will be celebrated June 18, will be a day of symposia and no regular classes. The proposed calendar, which has been vetted by faculty and administrative groups, has 69 class days for both the fall and winter terms. There are no conflicts with religious holidays contained in this calendar.
— Jeff Bleiler, The University Record
Ann Arbor campus
Faculty appointments with tenure
Snehal Banerjee, as professor of finance, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Justin Berg, associate professor of management and organizations, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Robert H. Cichewicz, professor of medicinal chemistry, College of Pharmacy, effective Aug. 1, 2024.
Aparna Joshi, professor of management and organizations, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
**Stacey A. Missmer, professor of obstetrics and gynecology, Medical School, effective May 16, 2024.
Charles Murry, associate professor of economics, LSA, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Olayinka Shiyanbola, professor of clinical pharmacy, College of Pharmacy, effective Aug. 1, 2024.
Adam M. Spry, associate professor of American culture, LSA, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Jesse Stiles, associate professor of art and design, Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Karen A. Thole, professor of mechanical engineering, College of Engineering, effective Aug. 1, 2024.
Angela Washko, professor of art and design, Penny W. Stamps School of Art & Design, effective Aug. 26, 2024.
Named professorships
*William J. Adams, Shorey Peterson Professor of Industrial Organization, LSA, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through May 31, 2025.
*Joel D. Blum, John D. MacArthur Professor of Earth and Environmental Sciences, LSA, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through May 31, 2025.
*Nancy E. Burns, Warren E. Miller Collegiate Professor of Political Science, LSA, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Robert H. Cichewicz, John Searle Professor, College of Pharmacy, effective Aug. 1, 2024, through July 31, 2029.
Susan M. Collins, Edward M. Gramlich Collegiate Professor of Public Policy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Vanessa K. Dalton, Timothy R. B. Johnson, M.D. Collegiate Professor of Global Women’s Health, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Suzanne R. Dawid, Andrew B. Briskin Research Professor of Pediatrics, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Eva L. Feldman, Russell N. DeJong Professor of Neurology, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Daniel B. Forger, Daniel B., Robert W. and Lynn H. Browne Professor of Science, LSA, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Stephen R. Forrest, Paul G. Goebel Professor of Engineering, College of Engineering, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Charles H. Garrett, Glenn McGeoch Collegiate Professor of Music, School of Music, Theatre & Dance, effective June 1, 2024, through May 31, 2029.
Sharon H. Haar, Emil Lorch Collegiate Professor of Architecture and Urban Planning, A. Alfred Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2027.
*Hope K. Haefner, Harold A. Furlong Professor of Women’s Health, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Lisa H. Harris, F. Wallace and Janet Jeffries Collegiate Professor of Reproductive Health, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Marc B. Hershenson, Frederick G.L. Huetwell Professor for the Cure and Prevention of Cystic Fibrosis, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Kenji Ishizaka, Toyota Visiting Professor of Japanese Studies, LSA, effective Aug. 26, 2024, through April 24, 2025.
Jacqueline S. Jeruss, Alfred E. Chang, M.D. Research Professor of Surgical Oncology, Medical School, effective May 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2028.
*Jaeeun Kim, Korea Foundation Professor of Korean Studies, LSA, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Paula M. Lantz, James B. Hudak Professor of Health Policy, Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
*Ronald G. Larson, the George Granger Brown Professor of Chemical Engineering, College of Engineering, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Qing Li, Betty Nixon-Spurway and Don L. Nixon Leukemia Research Professor, Medical School, effective March 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2028.
*Erica E. Marsh, S. Jan Behrman Collegiate Professor of Reproductive Medicine, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Ian S. Moyer, Richard Hudson Research Professor of History, LSA, effective Jan. 1, 2025, through May 31, 2025.
Karen E. Peterson, Stanley M. Garn Collegiate Professor of Nutritional Sciences, School of Public Health, effective May 1, 2024, through August 31, 2027.
Tony G. Reames, Tishman Professor of Environmental Justice, School for Environment and Sustainability, effective May 1, 2024, through April 30, 2029.
Christian E. Sandvig, H. Marshall Collegiate Professor of Digital Media, School of Information, effective May 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2028.
*Jordan A. Shavit, Henry and Mala Dorfman Family Professor of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, Medical School, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2029.
Olayinka Shiyanbola, C.R. Walgreen, Jr. Professor, College of Pharmacy, effective Aug. 1, 2024, through July 31, 2029.
*Zack J. Spica, Henry Pollack Early Career Professor, LSA, effective Jan. 1, 2025, through Dec. 31, 2029.
*David O. Ulrich, Rensis Likert Collegiate Professor of Business Administration, Stephen M. Ross School of Business, effective May 1, 2024, through April 30, 2026.
*Herbert G. Winful, the Joseph E. and Anne P. Rowe Professor of Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering, effective June 1, 2024, through May 31, 2029.
Administrative appointments
Kerstin Barndt, chair, Department of Germanic Languages and Literatures, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
Saif Benjaafar, Goff Smith Co-Director of the Joel D. Tauber Institute for Global Operations, College of Engineering, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2027.
*Dana Dolinoy Cipolla, NSF International Department Chair of Environmental Health Sciences, School of Public Health, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2027.
*Rita C-K Chin, associate dean for academic programs and initiatives, Rackham School of Graduate Studies, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
Miranda D. Brown, director, Honors Program, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
Lilia M. Cortina, chair, Department of Women’s and Gender Studies, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
*Marisa C. Eisenberg, director, Center for the Study of Complex Systems, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
**Jeffrey A. Fessler, interim chair, Division of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, College of Engineering, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
Christopher R. Friese, vice provost for academic and faculty affairs in the Office of the Provost, effective June 1, 2024, through May 31, 2029.
*David W. Gerdes, chair, Department of Physics, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
William J. Glover, chair, Department of History, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
Katharine M. Jenckes, chair, Department of Romance Languages and Literatures, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
*Vesa M. Kaartinen, associate dean for research, School of Dentistry, effective June 1, 2024, through May 31, 2029.
Maria Carmen de Mello Lemos, acting associate dean for research and engagement, School for Environment and Sustainability, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2024.
**Arthur Lupia, interim vice president for research and innovation, U-M Office of Research, effective April 1, 2024.
*Brahim Medjahed, associate dean for academic programs and initiatives, Rackham School of Graduate Studies, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
Andrew Murphy, chair, Department of Political Science, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
*Karen E. Peterson, chair, Department of Nutritional Sciences, School of Public Health, effective Sept. 1, 2024, through Aug. 31, 2027.
**Paul Picton, interim chair, Department of Anesthesiology, Medical School, effective May 1, 2024.
*Celia E. Schultz, chair, Department of Classical Studies, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2026.
**Karen A. Thole, Robert J. Vlasic Dean of Engineering, effective Aug. 1, 2024, through July 31, 2029.
Jason R. Young, director, Institute for the Humanities, and Mary Fair Croushore Professor, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
Magdalena J. Zaborowska, chair, Department of American Culture, LSA, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
Other transactions
Jane Prophet, extension of a personal leave of absence, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2025.
Dearborn campus
**Maureen Linker, associate provost, Office of the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs, effective April 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
*Marie P. Waung, associate dean, College of Arts, Sciences, & Letters, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
Flint campus
Laurence Alexander, chancellor, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2029.
Clement Chih Hao Chen, acting chair, School of Management, effective July 1, 2024, through Dec. 31, 2024.
James R. Schirmer, chair, Department of Language and Communication, College
of Arts, Sciences & Education, effective July 1, 2024, through June 30, 2027.
Hiba B. Wehbe-Alamah, David M. French Professor, effective July 1, 2024.
*Reappointments
**Interim approval granted
Retirements
Carl Akerlof, professor of physics, LSA, May 31, 2024. Akerlof received his B.A. from Yale University in 1960 and his Ph.D. from Cornell University in 1967. He joined U-M in 1969 as an assistant professor and was promoted to associate professor in 1972 and professor in 1978. Akerlof’s service includes multiple terms on the departmental executive committee, decades of leadership in introductory and advanced laboratory instruction, and the American Physical Society’s International Scientific Affairs Committee. He was awarded a fellowship in the American Physical Society and the 2008 U-M Distinguished Faculty Achievement Award. Akerlof led particle physics experiments at Fermilab and the Stanford Linear Accelerator Facility. He played a key role in imaging and building the first ground-based gamma ray telescopes. Akerlof then shifted to optical astronomy, where he helped launch the study of gravitational microlensing and the large-scale study of astrophysical transients. He also designed and built the first version of the Robotic Optical Transient Search Experiment, which detected the first prompt optical counterpart of a gamma-ray burst in January 1999. Akerlof has brought his expertise in designing innovative instrumentation to bear on the search for dark matter as a member of the LUX-ZEPLIN experiment.
Sushil K. Atreya, professor of climate and space sciences and engineering, College of Engineering, May 31, 2024. Atreya earned a B.Sc. in 1963 in physics, chemistry and mathematics, and a M.Sc. in 1965 in physics from the University of Rajasthan. He earned an M.S. in physics from Yale University in 1968 and a Ph.D. in atmospheric science from U-M in 1969. He was appointed assistant professor in 1978, and was promoted to associate professor in 1981 and professor in 1987. Atreya is a leader in the field of the origin and evolution of planetary and satellite atmospheres, climate evolution of Venus and Mars, and astrobiology. He published more than 250 refereed journal articles, 24 book chapters, 50 proceedings and reports, and several public outreach articles, and authored and edited four books. He was a co-investigator on several solar system exploration missions of NASA and space agencies of Europe, Japan and the former Soviet Union. He won the David Bates Medal of the European Geosciences Union, international planetary probe Alvin Seiff Award, and three NASA exceptional scientific achievement awards, and was a fellow for the American Association for the Advancement of Science, American Geophysical Union, and the Japan Geoscience Union.
William H. Baxter, professor of Chinese language and literature, and professor of Chinese linguistics, LSA, May 31, 2024. Baxter received his B.A. in 1970 from Amherst College, and his M.A. in 1974 and Ph.D. in 1977 from Cornell University. He was an assistant professor in the Department of English at the University of Alabama in Birmingham from 1978-83. Baxter joined U-M as an assistant professor in 1983, and was promoted to associate professor in 1990 and professor in 2013. Baxter specializes in historical linguistics. His 1992 book, “A Handbook of Old Chinese Phonology,” presents a reconstruction of the pronunciation of Old Chinese. He is a leading figure in the reconstruction of historical Chinese phonology and in determining the path from older forms of Chinese to their modern descendants. He published “Old Chinese: A new reconstruction” in 2014.This book, which received the prestigious Leonard Bloomfield Book Award from the Linguistic Society of America, is the product of eight years of collaboration and a linguistic reconstruction of the Chinese language of about 1000 BCE, drawing upon previously underutilized evidence. His recent publications deal with the history of Chinese dialects, linguistic approaches to early Chinese literature, and historical linguistics methodology.
Marilee A. Benore, professor of biology and biochemistry, College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters, UM-Dearborn, April 30, 2024. Benore received her A.A. in psychology and her B.A. in chemistry from Thomas More College in Kentucky in 1979, and her Ph.D. in chemistry from the University of Delaware in 1986. She conducted postdoctoral research at the former Ciba-Geigy Pharmaceutical Corp. in New Jersey from 1986-89. Benore joined UM-Dearborn as an assistant professor in 1989, and was promoted to associate professor in 1996 and professor in 2008. Benore served as associate dean of the College of Arts, Sciences, and Letters, and received the Eugene V. Arden Interdisciplinary Research/Teaching Award in 2018. Her laboratory research focuses on the vitamin riboflavin and its transport. She is a leader in the field of biochemistry education and co-authored a popular laboratory manual. Benore was named a fellow of the American Society of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology in 2023. She seeks to understand factors that influence women’s persistence in STEM fields and is an affiliate faculty member of the women’s and gender studies faculty. She has won the U-M Sarah Goddard Power Award and the Carol Hollenshead Inspire Award.
Andreas R. Blass, professor of mathematics, LSA, May 31, 2024. Blass received a B.S. in physics from the University of Detroit in 1966 and a Ph.D. in mathematics in 1970 from Harvard University. He joined U-M in 1970 as a T.H. Hildebrandt Research Instructor, was named an assistant professor in 1972 and was promoted to professor in 1984. Blass served several terms as associate chair in the mathematics department. He also was on the LSA Executive Committee from 2002-05. Blass held visiting appointments at universities in the United States and Germany, as well as the Fields Institute, Newton Institute and the Simons Institute for Theory of Computing. Blass has primarily studied mathematical logic and foundations, especially set theory. His research interests include combinatorics, category theory and theoretical computer science. In 1984, Blass proved that the existence of a basis for every vector space is equivalent to the axiom of choice. He was the first to point out connections between game semantics and linear logic. He had a long association with Microsoft Research, spending most summers collaborating with them from 1999-2017. Blass mentored 29 graduate students and has more than 225 publications, both books and articles, with numerous co-authors.
Phillip J. Bowman, professor of education, Marsal Family School of Education, May 31, 2024. Bowman received a B.S. from Northern Arizona University in 1970, and an M.A. in counseling psychology in 1971, an Ed.S. in 1973, an M.A. in social psychology in 1974, and a Ph.D. in 1977, all from U-M. From 1977-84, he was a research investigator and director of the Postdoctoral Training Program in Survey Research Methods in the Institute for Social Research. He spent years at various universities before returning to U-M in 2006 as a professor in the School of Education where he also was director of the Diversity Research and Policy Program and a faculty associate at the ISR. He was founding director of the National Center for Institutional Diversity from 2006-13. Bowman’s scholarship focuses on higher education, racial and ethnic diversity, and related public policy issues including workforce inequalities, urban family poverty, health disparities, and social justice. He has been a Rockefeller and Senior Ford Postdoctoral Fellow. He received the W.E.B. Du Bois Distinguished Scholar Award from the American Educational Research Association in 2016, and the Charles and Shirley Thomas Award for Distinguished Teaching and Mentoring from the American Psychological Association in 2006.
Robert Buckingham, professor of public health and health sciences, College of Health Sciences, UM-Flint, May 31, 2024. Buckingham received his D.P.H. from Yale University School of Medicine in 1978. He was the first director of research at the first hospice in Connecticut in 1974. Buckingham assisted in developing 81 hospice programs throughout the world. He was the founding dean of the School of Public Health at the University of Saskatchewan from 2009-14. From 2016-22, he was on the board of directors of the Association of Schools of Public Health European Region. He serves on the ASPHER-WHO COVID-19 Task Force. Buckingham joined UM-Flint in 2014 as professor of public health. He was awarded the Ivanovsky Prize in Humanitarian Medicine by the Russian Institute of Virology in 2006 and the Nelson Mandela Award for Academic Leadership by Harvard University in 2014 for his work as dean at the University of Saskatchewan. He has authored 13 books and many scientific refereed papers. Buckingham has authored five books on hospice care, including “Care of the Dying Child,” which has been translated into seven languages. He has written five scientific papers on COVID-19, which were published in international refereed scientific journals.
Joseph G. Conlon, professor of mathematics, LSA, May 31, 2024. Conlon received a B.S. in mathematics from Cambridge University in 1973 and a Ph.D. in mathematics in 1976 from Oxford University. He was a NATO postdoctoral fellow at the Courant Institute of New York University before joining the mathematics faculty at the University of Missouri at Columbia in 1978. Conlon joined U-M in 1989 as a professor. He served several terms as associate chair in the mathematics department. Conlon’s main research area is partial differential equations of parabolic type. Conlon has been studying the Lifschitz-Slyozov-Wagner, the Becker-Doering, and Carr-Penrose models, and proving some rigorous mathematical results about them. He also studies linear elliptic and parabolic PDE in divergence form with random coefficients. Conlon has been working on extensions of these results and their connections with understanding correlations in the statistical mechanics of the Coulomb dipole gas. The connection between stochastic analysis and PDEs also feature in his work on financial mathematics, in which he has played a key teaching and administrative role at U-M. Conlon mentored eight graduate students, as well as numerous young faculty members and postdoctoral researchers. He has more than 60 publications with numerous co-authors.
Stephen L. DesJardins, Marvin W. Peterson Collegiate Professor of Education and professor of education, Marsal Family School of Education, May 31, 2024. DesJardins received a B.S. from Northern Michigan University in 1983 and an M.A. in 1994 and a Ph.D. in 1996 from the University of Minnesota. He joined U-M in 2002 as an associate professor and was promoted to professor in 2009. He served as the faculty lead in the Marsal Center for Education, Design, Evaluation, and Research from 2014-24, and as director of the Dual Degree Program in Higher Education and Public Policy from 2002-24. He was an affiliate professor in the Gerald R. Ford School of Public Policy from 2012-22. DesJardins has made original and significant contributions to integrating the study of student transitions from secondary to and through postsecondary education, and improving the sophistication of statistical models and theories of understanding the effects of postsecondary transitions on students. He won the American Education Research Association Fellowship, a 2021 Fulbright Specialist award, and was selected as a 2022 Fulbright Scholar. DesJardins served on several editorial boards, and as special assistant in the U.S. Department of Education Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Policy Development from 2013-14.
Gregory John Ensing, clinical professor of pediatrics, Medical School, May 28, 2024. Ensing received his M.D. from Loyola University Stritch School of Medicine in 1982. In 1988, Ensing was appointed an instructor in pediatrics at the Mayo Clinic and was a clinical assistant professor of pediatrics at the Indiana University School of Medicine from 1988-93, and then a clinical associate professor of pediatrics until 1998, when he came to U-M as a clinical associate professor of pediatrics. He was promoted to clinical professor of pediatrics in 2003. Ensing received the Richard Popp Excellence in Teaching Award from the American Society of Echocardiography in 2022. He is a fellow of the American Society of Echocardiography and the American College of Cardiology. He has served on several national leadership committees, including as a member of the American Society of Echocardiography Board of Directors and the American Society of Echocardiography Governance Committee. He was co-director from 1998-2003 and director from 2003-18 of the Echocardiography Laboratory in the Congenital Heart Center, and director of Pediatric Cardiology Outreach from 2012-15. Ensing has published more than 90 peer-reviewed articles and has served as an ad hoc reviewer for many top-tier journals.
Caryl Flinn, professor of film, television, and media and professor of women’s and gender studies, LSA, May 31, 2024. Flinn received her B.A. in English from Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut. She then earned both an M.A. and a Ph.D. in film and broadcasting in 1985 and 1988, respectively, from the University of Iowa. After academic appointments at the University of Florida, the University of Toronto, and the University of Arizona, Flinn joined U-M as a professor in 2012, where she was also an affiliate of the Department of Women’s and Gender Studies. Flinn has produced scholarship and taught courses at the intersection of cinema studies, gender studies and music studies. Her work has centered primarily on film musicals, studio-era Hollywood, and New German Cinema. She has published five books, one co-edited anthology and more than 20 essays that consider film music and popular culture through the lens of queer theory, cultural studies and feminist theory. She has explored the ways that music produces meanings, effects and affects that serve ideological functions. She served as department chair from 2014-16. She was also instrumental to designing a more inclusive and interdisciplinary version of FTVM’s popular introductory course.
Lorraine M. Gutiérrez, Edith A. Lewis Collegiate Professor of Social Work, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, professor of social work, School of Social Work; and professor of psychology, LSA, May 31, 2024. Gutiérrez received her A.M. in psychology in 1986 and Ph.D. in social work and psychology in 1989 from U-M. She also earned an A.M. in social service administration from the University of Chicago in 1978 and an A.B. in history from Stanford University in 1976. Gutiérrez joined U-M as an associate professor of social work and of psychology in 1995. She was promoted to professor of social work in 2001 and professor of psychology in 2002. She also served as a faculty associate of American culture. From 2005-09, she served as director of the Joint Ph.D. Program in Social Work/Social Science and was the school’s inaugural DEI director from 2017-20, and the school’s associate dean for educational programs from 2020-22. Gutiérrez has been recognized as an outstanding scholar in the field of multicultural praxis in communities, organizations and higher education. Gutiérrez directed the Edward Ginsberg Center for Community Service and Learning, facilitated Rackham’s MORE initiative, and served on the Rackham Executive Board.
Patricia Hall, professor of music, School of Music, Theatre & Dance, May 31, 2024. Hall received a Ph.D. in music theory in 1989 from Yale University, an M.A. in music theory in 1980 from Columbia University, and a B.A. in psychology in 1976 from the University of California, Berkeley. Hall joinedthe University of California, Santa Barbara in 1985 as a visiting lecturer, and was promoted until she departed UCSB at the rank of professor IV in 2011 after 25 years of teaching. Hall joined U-M in 2011 as the department chair and professor of music theory. She is the recipient of the 2024 SMTD Teaching Excellence Award. Hall authored two books, co-edited a book, and served as a general editor of the 2017 book, “The Oxford Handbook of Music Censorship.” Her articles and reviews have appeared in several journals and a number of edited volumes. She received two Fulbright Fellowships for study in Vienna, and a grant from the Paul Sacher Foundation in Basel. Hall founded the online journal, Music & Politics,and was editor from 2007-17. She served as the president of the Society for Music Theory from 2019-21.
Alejandro Herrero-Olaizola, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor and professor of Spanish, LSA, Dec. 31, 2023. Herrero-Olaizola earned an M.A. in foreign languages from West Virginia University in 1989. He completed his Ph.D. in Spanish at the University of Southern California in 1994. He joined U-M as an assistant professor of Spanish in 1997, and was promoted to associate professor in 2003, and professor in 2008. Herrero-Olaizola is an internationally recognized scholar in Latin American literary and cultural studies. His research has evolved from traditional textual analysis of 20th-century Latin American literature to encompass diverse cultural, social and critical perspectives on cultural history. He authored and co-edited several works along with numerous published essays in peer-reviewed journals and book chapters. Herrero-Olaizola was awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities in 2002, the ACLS Charles A. Ryskamp Research Fellowship in 2003, the Fulbright Foundation U.S. Scholar Fellowship in 2010, and various internal accolades from U-M. Herrero-Olaizola’s undergraduate course offerings have become a staple of the upper-level curriculum in Spanish and of the department’s commitment to teaching the values of diversity, equity and inclusion. He has also been associate chair and graduate chair in the Department of Romance Languages and Literatures.
Megan Holmes, professor of the history of art, LSA, May 31, 2024. Holmes received her B.A. from Brown University in 1981, an M.Phil. from the Courtauld Institute of Art in 1983, and a Ph.D. from Harvard University in 1993. She joined U-M as an assistant professor in 2001, and was promoted to associate professor in 2004 and professor in 2013. Her study of Italian Renaissance visual culture has been shaped by interests in the production process and the materiality of works of art, the social-historical context of the making and reception of art, and formal analysis based on the critical deconstruction of artistic conventions and ideological perspectives embedded in visual imagery. Holmes supervised nine Ph.D. students and served on 21 dissertation committees. She served as the department associate chair, director of graduate studies, chair of multiple search committees, chair of the DEI Committee, and as an undergraduate adviser. Over the last three years, she has worked with the Prison Creative Arts Project, teaching an experiential-learning course oriented around social justice that includes visual art workshops in local prisons. She plans to continue teaching the course through the Residential College, and continuing her involvement with PCAP.
Robert W. Keener, professor of statistics, LSA, May 31, 2024. Keener received his Ph.D. in applied mathematics from MIT in 1979. He joined U-M as an assistant professor of statistics in 1980, and was promoted to associate professor of statistics in 1986 and professor of statistics in 1993. Keener’s research focused on sequential analysis and related topics, including optimal designs, bandit problems and multivariate renewal theory. A unifying theme of Keener’s research was the use of asymptotic analysis. His contributions to probability theory involve asymptotic expansions in multivariate renewal theory, papers on asymptotic expansions for boundary crossing problems with nonlinear renewal theory scaling, fluctuation theory, and expansions to improve Brownian motion approximations. Keener was elected to the prestigious fellowship of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics in 1994. Keener was the graduate chair for multiple terms and a perennial instructor of graduate level courses in theoretical statistics and probability. He authored “Theoretical Statistics: Topics for a Core Course,” an introduction to graduate-level theoretical statistics. This book was published in 2010 and has been adopted by many leading statistics Ph.D. programs across the United States.
Alexey S. Kondrashov, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, LSA, May 31, 2024. Kondrashov studied at the Lomonosov Moscow State University, where he received a Diploma of Higher Education in 1978 and a doctorate in 1984. He held positions of associate visiting scientist at the University of Wisconsin and research associate at the University of Chicago and University of Oregon from 1990-92. In 1993, he joined Cornell University and was promoted to associate professor in 1996. He moved to the National Center for Biotechnology Information of the National Institutes of Health in 1999. In 2006, he joined U-M as a professor in ecology and evolutionary biology. He has held a courtesy appointment at Moscow State University since 2011. Kondrashov made significant contributions to evolutionary biology, particularly in theoretical population genetics, molecular evolution and human genetics. His research shaped modern evolutionary thought and deepened the understanding of how genetic variation is maintained and drives evolution. He published more than 120 peer-reviewed papers. He authored the book “Crumbling Genome: The Impact of Deleterious Mutations on Humans,” taught introductory evolution courses for undergraduate and graduate students, and created innovative courses at the intersection of evolution, medicine and religion.
Benjamin J. Kuipers, professor of electrical engineering and computer science, College of Engineering, May 31, 2024. Kuipers received his B.A. in 1970 with high honors in mathematics from Swarthmore College and his Ph.D. in 1977 in mathematics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He worked as a research associate at MIT in 1977-78. He joined Tufts University as an assistant professor in 1978, and the University of Texas at Austin as an associate professor in 1985, was promoted to professor in 1992 and served as department chair for computer science from 1997-2001. Kuipers joined U-M as a professor in 2009. Kuipers’ career in artificial intelligence has focused on foundational domains of common-sense knowledge. Kuipers played a leading role in establishing the U-M Robotics Institute, which later became the Robotics Department. Kuipers introduced the course Ethics for AI and Robotics in 2020, and organized the Obert C. Tanner Lecture on Artificial Intelligence and Human Values in 2022. He has authored more than 200 technical papers and advised 35 Ph.D. students. He is a fellow of the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Marjorie Levinson, Frederick G.L. Huetwell Professor and professor of English language and literature, LSA, May 31, 2024. Levinson earned her B.A. in English from the University of Pennsylvania in 1973, and her Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1978. She was appointed assistant professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania in 1978, and was promoted to associate professor in 1985 and professor in 1988. She joined U-M in 1991 as a professor of English. She served on the LSA Humanities Subdivision Committee in 1993 and the Rackham Executive Board from 2019-21. Levinson is a scholar of 19th-century British literature, with special expertise in Romanticism. Her five books and many articles have redefined the field of Romantic studies as well as critical theory. She received the John D’Arms Award for Distinguished Graduate Student Mentoring and a fellowship from the Institute for the Humanities. Levinson was the Distinguished Annual Visiting Scholar in 2008 at King’s College, University of Cambridge, and Distinguished Visitor in 2018 at the Zentrum für Literatur-und-Kulturforschung, Berlin. She received the Distinguished Scholar Award from the Keats-Shelley Association of America in 2013, and has received fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies and the Guggenheim Foundation.
Roderick J. Little, Richard D. Remington Distinguished University Professor of Biostatistics, professor of biostatistics, School of Public Health; professor of statistics, LSA; and research professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, May 31, 2024. Little received his B.A. from Cambridge University in 1971, and his M.Sc. in 1972 and Ph.D. in 1974 from the Imperial College of Science and Technology, London University. He joined the University of Chicago as a research associate in 1974. In 1976, he joined the World Fertility Survey at the International Statistical Institute as a scientific associate. He was appointed associate professor of biomathematics at the University of California at Los Angeles in 1983 and was promoted to professor in 1987. He joined U-M as professor and chair of biostatistics in 1993. Little was elected to the National Academy of Medicine and American Academy of Arts and Sciences. His work has focused on missing data problems, survey sampling and statistical methods for longitudinal and clustered data. His research has had an impact on improving the validity and efficiency of statistical analyses in biomedical research. Little has co-authored several books in the field of biostatistics.
Stephen Lusmann, professor of music, School of Music, Theatre & Dance, May 31, 2024. Lusmann received an Artist Diploma in Opera in 1982 and an M.M. in vocal performance in 1980 from the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music, and a B.M. Mus.Ed. in 1977 from the State University of New York College at Fredonia. Lusmann joined U-M in 1999 as an assistant professor of music, and was promoted to associate professor of music in 2005 and to professor of music in 2021. Lusmann received the 2020 Harold Haugh Award for Excellence in Studio Teaching. He was the principal voice teacher for the Fort Worth Opera Studio from 2010-17 and has been a member of the voice faculty at the Seagle Festival, the oldest summer vocal training program in the United States, since 2001. Lusmann has sung more than 40 leading roles with major opera houses, including the Oper der Stadt Bonn and the Opera de Monte Carlo. He has performed at venues including Carnegie Hall and Hill Auditorium; festivals including the Anchorage Festival of Music and the Amalfi Coast Music Festival; and with numerous symphony orchestras including the Buffalo Philharmonic and the Sinfonieorchester Luzern.
Andrei S. Markovits, Arthur F. Thurnau Professor, Karl W. Deutsch Collegiate Professor of Comparative Politics and German Studies, professor of Germanic languages and literatures, and professor of sociology and of political science, LSA, May 31, 2024. Markovits received his B.A. in 1969, M.B.A. in 1971, M.A. in 1973, M.Phil. in 1974 and Ph.D. in 1976 from Columbia University. He joined Harvard University as a research associate at the Center for European Studies in 1975, Wesleyan University as an assistant professor in 1977, and Boston University as an associate professor in 1983. He chaired the Department of Politics at the University of California at Santa Cruz from 1992-95 and was a professor until joining U-M as a professor in 1999. Markovits has authored and edited many books and scholarly articles and most recently published a memoir. His work, which has been translated into 18 languages, focuses on German and European politics, European anti-Americanism and antisemitism as well as comparative sports cultures and human/canine relations. Markovits received many teaching awards throughout his career, including the Golden Apple Award in 2007 and the Tronstein Prize for Exceptional Undergraduate Teaching in 2007 and 2016.
Valerie Y. Marsh, clinical assistant professor of nursing, School of Nursing, June 3, 2024. Marsh received her B.S.N. and M.S.N. degrees from Eastern Michigan University in 1990 and 2003, respectively, and her Doctor of Nursing Practice from U-M in 2015. A registered nurse, Marsh was appointed as a clinical assistant professor at the School of Nursing in 2020. She has established a program of scholarship revolving around graduating and mentoring newly minted nurse practitioners, providing them with a strong sense of belonging, building their confidence and promoting their resilience. She has 35 years of experience as an operating room nurse, charge nurse and supervisor. She disseminates her scholarly work and promotes the use of evidence in clinical practice by presenting at professional meetings. Marsh is involved in several committees and service projects within the school and is eager to serve the university as a whole, and the local community. She serves as an adviser and mentor to undergraduates as well as graduate students working toward their certificate in nursing education. She coordinates internships at the university, C.S. Mott Children’s Hospital and the Frankel Cardiovascular Center.
Jeffrey L. Platt, professor of surgery and of microbiology and immunology, Medical School, May 18, 2024. Platt received his B.A. in politics from New York University in 1971, and an M.D. from the University of Southern California in 1977. He trained as a clinical pediatrician at the University of California, Los Angeles and in pediatric nephrology and transplant immunology at the University of Minnesota. He joined Duke University and was promoted to professor in the departments of surgery, pediatrics and immunology in 1992. He became director of the transplantation biology program in the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine in 1998. He joined U-M in 2008 as a professor of surgery and of microbiology and immunology, and director of the transplantation biology program. He has served the university as a luminary in the field of transplant immunology. Platt was first to propose and report on application of genetic engineering to enable potential use of pigs as sources of transplanted organs and tissues. He was elected to the National Academy of Medicine in 1997 and the Association of American Physicians in 1998. He received the American Heart Association’s Clinician-Scientist Award and Established Investigator Award, and the National Institutes of Health’s MERIT Award.
Dennis Pollard, lecturer IV in Romance languages and literatures, LSA, May 31, 2024. Pollard earned a B.A. in liberal arts and Spanish from Albion College in 1971, and his Ph.D. in Spanish literature from U-M in 1986. He was an adjunct lecturer at U-M in 1978, then lecturer in Spanish in 1986. He joined Albion College as a visiting assistant professor of foreign languages in 1987, then rejoined U-M as a lecturer III in 1988. He was promoted to lecturer IV in 2004. Pollard was instrumental in developing and updating curriculum, supervising and evaluating lecturers and graduate student instructors, and managing a substantial annual enrollment of approximately 550 students. He advised undergraduate students on course selection and study-abroad opportunities, and pioneered online resources to enhance language learning. He created and piloted courses, including Introduction to the Study of Literature, and Spanish Conversation for Non-concentrators. Pollard participated in several university committees, including the LEO Professional Development Committee and the LSA Information Technology Committee. His dedication to employing technology in the classroom led him to develop web-based instructional projects and multimedia components, which enhanced students’ engagement and understanding of complex grammar concepts.
David L. Rolston, professor of Chinese language and literature, LSA, May 31, 2024. Rolston received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago in 1988. He joined U-M as an assistant professor in 1988, and was promoted to associate professor in 1995, and professor in 2022. Rolston is a scholar of early modern Chinese literature and is particularly known for his learned work on oral forms of literature. His period of specialization stretches from the 16th to the 21st centuries. Three decades of research culminated in his monograph, “Inscribing Jingju/Peking Opera.” Rolston has authored four monographs and numerous articles. He is an active member of several professional organizations such as the Association for Asian Studies and the Association for Asian Performance. Rolston has taught a wide range of classes across the Chinese studies curriculum at the undergraduate and graduate level, including large lectures and several self-designed seminars. Conscientious of student needs, Rolston was dedicated to creating courses that emphasize dialogue and student-centered classrooms. Students have expressed their appreciation for his dedication, his deep knowledge of Chinese literature and performance traditions. Rolston was an active mentor of graduate students and has served on and chaired many dissertation committees.
Jerry D. Sanders, associate professor of biology, College of Innovation and Technology, UM-Flint, May 31, 2024. Sanders received his B.S. in botany and zoology in 1979 and his M.S. in zoology in 1985 from East Texas State University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas, Southwestern Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences in 1994. He completed a postgraduate research fellowship in the Department of Pathology at the University of California, San Diego Medical Center. He joined UM-Flint as an assistant professor in 1998, and was promoted to associate professor in 2006. Sanders is an authority in the field of microbiology, spanning a range of interests from applied and environmental microbiology to microbial pathogenesis. He co-authored two veterinary vaccine patents. Sanders has taught 16 courses ranging from a first-year experience course to graduate level courses in immunology and molecular biology. While serving as department chair, he gained support for the development of the Bryer Research Laboratory. Sanders was active in the UM-Flint chapter of the American Association of University Professors and a proponent of the philosophy that academic freedom and shared faculty governance were necessary to the long-term health of the university.
Martin Sarter, Charles M. Butter Collegiate Professor of Psychology and professor of psychology, LSA, May 31, 2024. Sarter received his B.S. in 1979 from the University of Landau, M.S. in 1982 from the University of Dusseldorf, and Ph.D. in 1984 from the University of Konstanz. Sarter joined U-M as a professor in 2004. He was an adjunct research professor of neurology from 2018-24. Sarter is recognized as one of the leading behavioral and cognitive neuroscientists in the world for his research on the brain mechanisms involved in attentional control over behavior and psychological function. His work was seminal in elucidating how brain acetylcholine systems contribute to attentional processes, including complex movement control in Parkinson’s disease. Sarter has shown how individual variation in acetylcholine function influences attentional control toward drug cues in ways that may contribute to the development of addiction. He received the Distinguished Scientific Award for an Early Career Contribution to Psychology from the American Psychological Association, and is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the International Behavioral Neuroscience Society, the American Psychological Association and the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology. He has served on numerous editorial boards and as editor-in-chief of the “European Journal of Neuroscience.”
Johannes W. Schwank, James and Judith Street Professor of Chemical Engineering and professor of chemical engineering, College of Engineering, May 31, 2024. Schwank received his chemistry diploma in 1975 and Ph.D. in physical chemistry in 1978 from the University Innsbruck, Austria. He joined U-M as an assistant professor in 1980, and was promoted to associate professor in 1984, and professor in 1990. Schwank chaired the Department of Chemical Engineering from 1990-95, was interim director of the Energy Institute from 2011-12, and director of the Electron Microbeam Analysis Laboratory from 2013-15. He was director of the Multidisciplinary Design Program from 2021-23. Schwank’s research included heterogeneous catalysis, sensor development and the invention of new energy storage materials, particularly focusing on how materials’ surface structures influence their catalytic and functional properties. His work in energy technology and his directorship at REFRESCH exemplify his commitment to addressing global issues in food, energy and water security in resource-scarce settings, uniting students and faculty in solving real-world challenges. Schwank was as an AIChE fellow and received the Giuseppe Parravano Award, the U-M Chemical Engineering Excellence Award, and CoE’s Class of 1938 Distinguished Service Award. He authored 236 refereed publications and secured 25 patents.
Elizabeth Sears, George H. Forsyth Jr. Collegiate Professor of the History of Art and professor of the history of art, LSA, May 31, 2024. Sears received her B.A. from Duke University in 1974, and her M.A. and Ph.D. from Yale University in 1977 and 1982, respectively. After teaching at Princeton University from 1982-89, she joined U-M as an assistant professor in 1992, and was promoted to associate professor in 1995, and professor in 2001. She was department chair from 2001-02 and 2016-19. A distinguished figure in the fields of medieval art and disciplinary historiography, her research has been supported by numerous American awards, including a Guggenheim Fellowship. She has authored 25 articles as well as two books. Her first book, “The Ages of Man: Medieval Interpretations of the LifeCycle,” was awarded the John Nicholas Brown Prize from the Medieval Academy of America. She has served the medieval field by editing the flagship journal Gestafrom 2000-03 and serving on the board and chairing the Publications Committee of the International Center of Medieval Art. She received the LSA Excellence in Teaching Award in 1999 and the Prize for Excellence in Teaching Medieval Studies from the MAA in 2019.
Nancy Uffner, clinical associate professor of theatre and drama, School of Music, Theatre & Dance, May 31, 2024. Uffner received an M.A. in theatre in 1985 from U-M and a B.S. degree in theatre and communication in 1979 from Eastern Michigan University. Uffner has held adjunct appointments at Northwestern University, EMU and Mt. San Antonio Community College. She joined U-M in 1995 as an adjunct lecturer and production stage manager, was promoted to clinical assistant professor of theatre and drama in 2018 and to clinical associate professor of theatre and drama in 2021. Uffner’s regional theatre stage management work includes the MUNY, Weston Playhouse Theatre Company, Lythgoe Family Panto, Goodspeed Musicals, Music Theatre Wichita, the U-M Festival of New Works, Goodman Theatre, Steppenwolf, Actors Theatre of Louisville and the Chicago Opera Theatre. Her national tour experience includes “All Shook Up,” “Fame,” “Ken Hill’s Phantom of the Opera,” “South Pacific” and “Camelot.”She has recently worked with Complexions Contemporary Ballet and the Grand Rapids Ballet. In addition to Actors Equity Association, Uffner is a member of the Stage Managers’ Association, and the U.S. Institute of Theatre Technology where she was recently honored with the USITT Distinguished Achievement Award for Education.
Bernardus van der Pluijm, Bruce R. Clark Collegiate Professor of Geology and professor of earth and environmental sciences, LSA, May 31, 2024. Van der Pluijm received his B.Sc. in 1977 from the University of Leiden, his M.Sc. in 1981 from the Universities of Leiden and Utrecht, and his Ph.D. in 1984 from the University of New Brunswick. He joined U-M as an assistant professor in 1985, and was promoted to associate professor in 1991, and professor in 1996. He was a professor of the environment from 2003-21, and senior counselor to the provost from 2007-10. Van der Pluijm’s research focused on structural geology and tectonics, from the microscopic scale to the evolution of mountain belts. He pioneered the development of LectureTools to enhance student interactivity and co-authored a textbook. He founded the Global Change Program at U-M and was the founding editor of Earth’s Future. Van der Pluijm is a fellow of the Geological Society of America, the Geological Association of Canada and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. He received the Director’s Award for Collaborative Integration from the National Science Foundation in 2012 and the GSA Distinguished Service Award in 2005 for his service as editor of Geology.
— Compiled by Katie Kelton, The University Record
— Editor’s note: The retirements listing has been updated from its original version after a retirement agreement involving Matthew Countryman was rescinded by mutual agreement.
