To: The University Community

From: Robert Glidden

RE: Nominations for Distinguished Professor

One of the most cherished University endowments, established in the 1950s by Mr. Edwin L. Kennedy is the Baker Fund, which supports the Kennedy Lecture Series and the Distinguished Professor Program. Current income from this restricted endowment supports the appointment of a new Distinguished Professor each year.

The Distinguished Professors themselves elect to membership faculty deserving of this high recognition. A screening committee made up of the four most recently elected Distinguished Professors reviews nominations and develops a short list of candidates. The screening committee for the 2003 cycle consists of Ursula Belden (Theater, 2000), chair; Steven Grimes (Physics, 2001); Kenneth Holroyd (Psychology, 2002); Alexander Arhangelskii (Mathematics, 2003); and Professor Jay Gunasekera (Mechanical Engineering, 2003).

According to the terms of the endowment, those elected to membership in the company of Distinguished Professors "will be chosen on the basis of outstanding artistic, literary, historical, or scientific achievements, or other worthy accomplishments attaining wide recognition." To be considered for election, a faculty member must have tenure and a minimum of five years of service at Ohio University. While a positive assessment of effectiveness as a teacher is an essential requirement, the prime consideration is scholarly or creative contributions that have received substantial recognition beyond the Ohio University community.

Nominations for Distinguished Professor are encouraged and welcomed from all schools, departments and academic disciplines at Ohio University. Nomination may come from directors, chairs or any faculty member.

Nominations may be submitted directly to Professor Ursula Belden, c/o Vicki Hanson, Kantner 308. All nominations should be accompanied by supporting information, including bibliography, letters of support, representative publications, and other pertinent materials. Letters of support should not exceed ten in number. The nominating letter itself should include a summary of the nominee's career and qualifications. Inquiries about the content of nomination dossiers may be directed to Professor Belden. The announcement of the Distinguished Professor election for 2004 will take place at next autumn’s Honors Convocation.

The deadline for 2004 nominations is April 15, 2004.

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