Joseph J. H. Ackerman, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Chemistry in Arts and Sciences, has been named William Greenleaf Eliot Professor of Chemistry. The Eliot chair is the oldest professorship here, dating back to the University's earliest years.
Ackerman, who also holds joint appointments as research professor of chemistry and as professor of radiology in the School of Medicine, is known internationally for his contributions to the application and development of nuclear magnetic resonance techniques for the study of intact living systems.
Ackerman came to the University in 1979. He has published widely in the field and is the author or co-author of nearly 100 scientific manuscripts. He provides leadership across campus, serving on the executive committees of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics and the Division of Biology and Biomedical Sciences and numerous other panels.
Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton praised Ackerman's research and dedication. "Washington University is fortunate to be able to recognize Dr. Joseph Ackerman by appointing him as William Greenleaf Eliot Professor of Chemistry," Wrighton said. "Dr. Ackerman has made pathbreaking contributions in the chemical sciences and has been an extraordinary contributor to the advance of the Department of Chemistry and the University as a whole. Personally, I am grateful to Dr. Ackerman for his leadership and scholarship and for his commitment to Washington University."
Edward S. Macias, Ph.D., executive vice chancellor and dean of Arts and Sciences, announced the appointment. "Joe and I have been colleagues for over two decades and I know from my own experience that he is an absolutely first-rate scientist," Macias said. "He came to Washington University having already distinguished himself in the scientific community, and he has continued to do outstanding work in a field that has become more and more important and critical to work in many other fields.
"He cares deeply about our curriculum and is wonderful with our students and faculty, especially in mentoring young faculty members," Macias added. "I am enormously pleased that he will become the Eliot Professor of Chemistry."
William Greenleaf Eliot was president of the University's Board of Trustees from 1854 to 1870 and chancellor from 1870 to 1887.
Eight distinguished chemists have held the Eliot professorship in the past: John M. Schofield, 1857-62; Abram Litton, 1862-91; Charles R. Sanger, 1899; Edward Harris Keiser, 1900-13; Leroy McMaster, 1922-46; Joseph W. Kennedy, 1950-57; John Sowden, 1957-62; and David Lipkin, 1966 until 1981, when he became Eliot Professor Emeritus.
Joseph Ackerman is the subject of the Washington People profile in the week's Record.
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