Jack Baldwin, Physics and Astronomy

Jack Baldwin’s career in astronomy research spans three decades of groundbreaking discovery. Every astronomer knows about the “Baldwin Effect,” which relates the brightness of quasars to the widths of their emission lines, and the “BPT” (Baldwin-Phillips-Terlevich) diagrams, which provide information on galaxy emissions. His publications on these and other fundamental discoveries have earned him a place as a Web of Science top-cited scholar, an honor that only 22 other MSU faculty members share. Baldwin is co-director for the Center for the Study of Cosmic Evolution, which brings together astronomers, nuclear physicists, and particle physicists to study the evolution of the cosmos, to which the SOAR telescope in Chile, which MSU jointly operates and owns, is key. Baldwin was essential to the successful completion of this telescope. Under his leadership, the department’s astronomy group has developed an evening lecture series for lay audiences at Abrams Planetarium.

Gang Bao, Mathematics

Gang Bao is a leading scholar in the mathematical foundation for modeling, analysis, and computation of diffractive optics, nonlinear diffractive optics, and near-field optics. He has made remarkable progress in well-posedness studies of Maxwell’s equations in complex linear, chiral, and nonlinear media. He established critical estimates for solutions to Maxwell’s equations with jump coefficients and sources and developed computational approaches based on finite element, least-square finite element, and hybrid boundary/finite element methods – state-of-the-art research on inverse and optimal design problems in diffractive and nonlinear optics. Bao has participated in funded research projects that have generated approximately $2 million in external funding from NSF, Department of Defense and industry. He was awarded the Feng Keng Prize of Scientific Computing in 2003. The National Science Foundation of China honored him with the Distinguished Overseas Young Researcher Award in 2004.

S. Marc Breedlove, Neuroscience Program, and Zoology, and Psychology

S. Marc Breedlove is an internationally recognized authority on gender differences in the nervous system. In more than 100 scholarly publications, he has made important contributions to an understanding of the influences of hormones and experience on brain structure, function, and behavior, particularly in regard to gender differentiation during development and in adulthood. His work is rigorous, pioneering, and provocative. Science journals view him as a “go-to” person when commentary and perspective on research findings are needed. As a teacher and mentor, Breedlove is recognized for his commitment to graduate research training and professional development, his undergraduate textbook on behavioral neuroscience, his efforts to recruit minorities to careers in research and his contributions to public education and awareness of science. Breedlove also conducts a successful grant-writing workshop for graduate students and postdocs and chairs the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee.

Betty H.C. Cheng, Computer Science and Engineering

Betty H. C. Cheng is an internationally recognized scholar for her contributions in software engineering. Cheng investigates methods for building large, reliable, and maintainable software systems, such as onboard control systems in cars, trains, and patient care systems. She has published more than 100 refereed papers, including several that have won awards. Over the past sixteen years, she has obtained nearly $9 million in funding from external sources. Cheng is on the editorial boards of three journals and serves on the organizing committees for top conferences in her field. She gives numerous colloquia and keynotes. Cheng is active in curriculum development, pedagogical research, innovative laboratory development, and defining a new paradigm for the computer science and engineering capstone course that brings in customers from high-profile companies to give students experience with real-world project data.

R. Michael Garavito, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology

R. Michael Garavito is recognized as one of the top five membrane crystallographers in the world. His decoding of the crystal structure of the enzyme cyclooxygenase-l is considered a landmark achievement. This medically important enzyme is involved in arthritis, cardiovascular disease, cancer and neurological disorders such as Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Knowledge of its crystal structure has provided a more detailed understanding of how aspirin, ibuprofen, and other nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs work. His research studies of other proteins’ crystal structures, namely the glycosyl transferases involved in antibiotic biosynthesis, are of increasing importance with the emergence of antibiotic resistance as a global health concern. Garavito’s advice is regularly sought by major pharmaceutical and protein engineering companies. His counsel is of great value in recombinant expression and purification of membrane proteins as well as proteins in general.

Kay E. Holekamp, Zoology

Kay E. Holekamp is a preeminent behavioral biologist whose work on spotted hyenas in Kenya has reshaped perspectives on the evolution and development of social behavior in mammals. She has demonstrated that spotted hyenas rival certain primate species in their understanding of social relationships. She has also established how social dominance influences reproductive success, how male dispersal determines the genetic structure of populations and how mothers can adaptively modify phenotypes of their offspring by varying prenatal hormone concentrations. Holekamp has a record of publishing groundbreaking papers in peer-reviewed journals as well as receiving external grants. She is the recipient of many prestigious honors, including fellowships from the Searle, Packard, and Guggenheim Foundations and a lifetime achievement award from the American Society of Mammologists. Her doctoral and postdoctoral students have also extended her legacy by establishing research programs at institutions nationwide.

James D. Kelly, Crop and Soil Sciences

James D. Kelly is a prominent research geneticist who has focused on the improvement of dry beans, a crop of major importance in Michigan. He has directed a breeding and genetics program that focused on the use of molecular markers to assist in selection for enhanced yield, plant architecture, processing quality, drought tolerance and disease resistance. Kelly also pioneered the development and adoption of basic molecular tools to enhance the efficiency of bean breeding that are now widely used by bean breeders throughout the world. He has released 34 dry bean varieties in 11 commercial seed classes that have helped diversify bean production in Michigan and contributed to lower production costs. Kelly served as the principal investigator in the release of six successful bean varieties for low input conditions in Mexico. In Ecuador, he introduced newer molecular technologies to enhance the breeding program and has participated in the release of four varieties.

James R. Miller, Entomology

James R. Miller is a world-class insect scientist, specializing in the manipulation of insect behavior to prevent pest damage to crops and to reduce disease transmission to humans. He has consistently pushed the boundaries of knowledge on the mechanisms underlying important insect behaviors, from the onion fields of Michigan to the villages of Kenya. His investigations of the onion fly have stimulated worldwide research on pest control strategies using attractive and repellent odors. More recently he has challenged the dogma surrounding the behavior of malaria-transmitting mosquitoes, with major implications for how developing nations can tackle this terrible disease. Miller has inspired those around him, and a generation of his graduate students and postdoctoral scientists are leading faculty members throughout the United States and in Europe. His contributions have been recognized with an Excellence-in-Teaching Award from his professional society and a Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater.

Sandi W. Smith, Communication

Sandi W. Smith is a nationally recognized scholar of distinction for her pioneering work on health communication, particularly in the areas of organ donation, altruistic behavior, and substance abuse prevention. Her CDC-recognized work has involved merging schools of thought on compliance, media messages, and health perceptions. Smith’s work is heavily supported by external contracts and grants, and she has published nearly fifty articles and chapters in refereed publications; her conference papers, too, are numerous. Theoretically based and collaborative, Smith’s work has social applications and impact. Smith serves as a board member on several major journals and has held leadership positions in the International Communication Association and the National Communication Association. She sets high standards for her students. MSU recognized Smith with its Teacher-Scholar Award in 1993-94 and the Undergraduate Communication Association’s Outstanding Faculty Award.

Distinguished Academic Staff

Julie A. Chapin, MSU Extension, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources

Julie A. Chapin’s dedication to MSU Extension’s 4-H youth development program has positively touched the lives of youth, volunteers, colleagues, and staff. Her impact on youth development programs can be seen on campus, with partner organizations in counties across Michigan and across the nation. Chapin has worked diligently to provide quality information on youth guidance to volunteers and organizational leaders. In teaching and practice, Chapin believes in the value of teamwork and values each team member’s contributions. Chapin has generated more than $5.3 million dollars in grants over the course of her career. Her ability to obtain funding to provide for innovative projects has led to quality relationships with state, local, federal, and private funding sources. Her most recent accomplishment was launching “Explore, Experience, Achieve Through 4-H Youth Mentoring,” a program that has matched more than 250 at-risk youth in 20 counties with mentors.

Lynn Forsblom, Academic and Student Affairs, College of Social Science

Lynn C. Forsblom, senior academic specialist and director of academic and student affairs in the College of Social Science and academic specialist, instructor, and assistant instructor for many years in the Department of Kinesiology, has had a major impact on the academic lives of undergraduates. She is dedicated to enhancing the educational development of undergraduate students. Forsblom’s exemplary advising has brought national recognition to MSU from the National Academic Advising Association. She fosters academic specialists and advisers’ abilities and enthusiasm into successful applied practice, turning many undergraduate students’ uncertainty about course selection, career choices, and academic performance into productive and enjoyable college experiences. She has a deep personal and professional commitment to excellence and to the creation of a humanistic learning and working environment. She is committed to academic excellence, respect of diversity, and equality in opportunity.

Jerry Weinberger, Political Science

Jerry Weinberger is a world-class scholar who combines an abstract interest in philosophy with a passion for contemporary political issues. His writings on Francis Bacon and, more recently, Benjamin Franklin are viewed as exemplary. He has written two major books on Bacon, Advancement of Learning and an edition of Bacon’s "Reign of King Henry VII." Two of his other writings, an introduction to his edition of Bacon’s "Great Instauration" and "New Atlantis" and an article, have served to introduce graduate and undergraduate students to the depth and breadth of Bacon’s plan for modernization. Most recently, Weinberger’s "Benjamin Franklin Unmasked" has explored the depth of Franklin as a thinker. As co-director of the Symposium on Science, Reason, and Modern Democracy and director of the LeFrak Forum, Weinberger’s efforts have brought wide recognition and millions of dollars in external funds to the university. In 2004, the NEH awarded a “We the People” grant to the program.

Timothy J. Hinds, Department of Mechanical Engineering, College of Engineering

Timothy J. Hinds provides students with insight into the world of engineering. The National Academy of Engineering has identified the lack of industrial experience in those who educate our engineers as one of the critical deficiencies in the educators of tomorrow’s engineers. Hinds has made a point of incorporating his industry experience and perspective into the knowledgebase he brings to students. His dedication to educating students has truly transformed lives. His deep concern and respect for the future of students and the field of engineering is evident in his teaching and research activities. Innovation, creativity, and excellence characterize Hinds’ contributions to mechanical engineering. He received one of only three prestigious 2004 ASME Innovation in Mechanical Engineering Curriculum Innovation honorable mention awards for his contributions to the department’s INTEnD Program and his role in the education of our students in the global practice of mechanical engineering.

Sharon Anderson Schwille, Department of Teacher Education, College of Education

Sharon Schwille is the coordinator of teacher preparation in elementary and secondary education. In thirty years at MSU, she has greatly influenced teachers and, through them, untold numbers of children. In mentoring novice teachers, she draws on her own varied teaching experiences in New York, Illinois, and Texas. Schwille is a steady, calm leader who confronts the problems facing student teachers and their school mentors while dealing with queries from parents and school administrators. She listens and responds with “just the right words of encouragement and support,” making her a consummate problem solver of integrity and compassion. Her practice is informed by research, including contributions to the seminal studies on mentoring beginning teachers. An outstanding writer, she has captivated the readers of her unprecedented and insightful dissertation on how a thoughtful, conscientious teacher struggled for seven very difficult years before bringing her teaching into line with current ideals.

Teacher-Scholar Award

Pero G. Dagbovie

Department of History, College of Social Science

Lynn Fendler

Department of Teacher Education, College of Education

Kelly L. Klump

Department of Psychology, College of Social Science

Carrie La Ferle

Department of Advertising, Public Relations and Retailing, College of Communication Arts and Sciences

Sandra L. Snow

School of Music, College of Arts and Letters

Peter K. Yu

College of Law; Asian Studies Center; Information Studies and Media, College of Communication Arts and Sciences