SUNY Board of Trustees Appoints 28 Faculty to Distinguished Ranks

Albany -- The State University of New York Board of Trustees today approved the appointments of 28 faculty to distinguished ranks, as recommended by campus colleagues and SUNY Chancellor John R. Ryan. All of the today’s distinguished rank appointments are effective immediately.

SUNY Chancellor John R. Ryan said, “SUNY faculty who receive appointment to the distinguished ranks provide a glimpse of the broad service contributions and the career achievements being made on our campuses across New York State. Each of these individuals has met and exceeded the requirements for these honors and I commend the Board of Trustees for recognizing their talent and service by approving their appointments to distinguished ranks.”

Distinguished Professorship

Appointment to the rank of Distinguished Professor is conferred upon individuals who have achieved national or international prominence and a distinguished reputation within a chosen field.  This distinction is attained through significant contributions to the research literature or through artistic performance or achievement in the arts.  The candidates’ work must be of such character that the individuals’ presence will elevate the standards of scholarship of colleagues both within and beyond these persons’ academic fields.  It must also be of such quality that students and scholars on other SUNY campuses could and would wish to benefit by lectures and seminars or other appropriate presentations the faculty members might bring to them.  Receiving this appointment are:

• Gregory Belenky, an internationally respected engineer and professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Stony Brook University. Professor Belenky’s groundbreaking research and scholarship have created new frontiers, particularly in regard to semiconductor devices and laser diodes.
• Miriam Rafailovich, a world-renowned researcher and an inspired professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Stony Brook University, whose work on x-ray and neutron reflectivity in polymer films spawned an entirely new field of polymer physics.

Distinguished Service Professorship

The Distinguished Service Professorship honors and recognizes extraordinary service.  Appointment can be conferred solely by the SUNY Board of Trustees.  Candidates must have demonstrated substantial distinguished service not only at the campus and the State University, but also at the community, regional and State levels. To be considered appropriate, service must exceed the work generally considered to be a part of a candidate’s basic professional work and should include service that exceeds that for which professors are normally compensated.  It must also extend over multiple years and must involve the application of intellectual skills drawing from the candidate’s scholarly and research interests to issues of public concern. In addition to the selection criteria for the Distinguished Service Professorship, to be nominated, a faculty member must have held the rank of full professor for five years, have three years of full-time service at the nominating institution, and have completed at least 10 years of full-time service for SUNY. Receiving this appointment are:

• Professor Serdar Elgun, Mechanical Engineering Technology, Farmingdale State College
• Professor Joseph I. Greenfield, Technology Division, SUNY Delhi
• Professor Vincent J. Iacono, Periodontics, Stony Brook University
• Professor Arnold M. Moses, Medicine, SUNY Upstate Medical Center
• Professor Janet Nepkie, Music, College at Oneonta
• Professor Richard Pastore, Psychology, Binghamton University
• Professor Robert E. Rees, Electrical Engineering Technology, Alfred State College
• Professor M. A. Q. Siddiqui, Anatomy and Cell Biology, SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn
• Professor Alfred J. Stamm, Earth Sciences/Meteorology, SUNY Oswego
• Professor Douglas Garnar, History and Social Sciences, Broome Community College
• Professor Carlo Sclafani, Modern Languages, Westchester Community College
• Professor Carl M. Wahlstrom, Sociology and Intermediate Studies, Genesee Community College

Distinguished Teaching Professorship

The Distinguished Teaching Professorship recognizes and honors mastery of teaching.  Authority to confer appointment resides solely by the State University of New York’s Board of Trustees.  For this prestigious tribute to be conferred, candidates must have demonstrated consistently superior mastery of teaching, outstanding service to students and commitment to their ongoing intellectual growth, scholarship and professional growth, and adherence to rigorous academic standards and requirements. Further, to be eligible for nomination a faculty member must have attained and held the rank of full professor for five years, have completed at least three years of full-time teaching on the nominating campus, ten years of full-time teaching in the System, and must have regularly carried a full-time teaching load as defined by the campus at the undergraduate, graduate, or professional level. Receiving this appointment are:

• Professor Seth N. Asumah, Political Science, SUNY Cortland
• Professor Jeffrey Berman, English, University at Albany
• Professor Paulette Bernd, Anatomy and Cell Biology, SUNY Health Science Center at Brooklyn
• Professor Joseph Di Giovanna, Philosophy, SUNY Potsdam
• Professor Sue R. Faerman, Public Administration and Policy, University at Albany
• Professor James J. Grillo, Business Technology, Alfred State College
• Professor Thomas Hemmick, Physics and Astronomy, Stony Brook University
• Professor James R. Hurtgen, Political Science, SUNY Fredonia
• Professor Vicki Janik, Professional Communications, Farmingdale State College
• Professor Gerald E. Kadish, History, Binghamton University, Professor Carl R. F. Lund, Chemical and Biological Engineering, University at Buffalo
• Professor Stephen John Padalino, Physics, SUNY Geneseo
• Professor Jeanne Ryan, Psychology, SUNY Plattsburgh
• Professor Gale Spencer, Nursing, Binghamton University

The State University of New York is the largest comprehensive university system in the United States, educating more than 417,500 students in 7,669 degree and certificate programs on 64 campuses. 

-30-