The University Distinguished Professor Award is the highest academic honor that UVM can bestow upon a member of the faculty. Holders of this title are recognized as not only having achieved international eminence within their respective fields of study, but for the truly transformative nature of their contributions to the advancement of knowledge. These faculty members are considered top scholars who have excelled in their disciplines.
No more than five percent of full professors may hold an active appointment as a University Distinguished Professor at any one time. Faculty holders of this honor may use the title University Distinguished Professor until their retirement at the University of Vermont and wear a medal with their academic regalia signifying this distinction. They will also serve as an informal advisory body to the leadership of the university and receive an annual professional expense stipend to support their scholarly endeavors until retirement or separation from UVM.
Current Professors
NICHOLAS GOTELLI, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Biology,
and George H. Perkins Professor of Zoology
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Nick Gotelli is the George H. Perkins Professor of Zoology, and a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America. He received his Ph.D. from Florida State University and joined the University of Vermont in 1992. Within the fields of Community and Population Ecology, his internationally recognized and globally impactful work deeply integrates theory with the structure and function of ecosystems in the real world and includes novel experimental ecology, broad-scale observational studies, statistical analyses, and dynamic modeling. His use of advances in computation and software to model ecology has transformed this field. Dr. Gotelli's research addresses fundamental questions about the organization of animal and plant communities. His work explores what forces determine the species composition and abundance of natural assemblages, how competition and predation affect local community structure, and what biotic and abiotic factors control population growth and extinction risk. Dr. Gotelli has authored 230 publications and five books, and has secured 21 competitive grants from NSF, DOE, or EPA. His contributions to the field include active participation in multiple journals and national societies. He has trained 19 graduate students (five are now tenured professors) and multiple post-doctoral fellows. As one of his reviewers noted, Dr. Gotelli is "a leader in ecology but also a source of inspiration and a role model for colleagues and students alike." For his impactful and influential work, Dr. Gotelli is highly deserving of the UVM Distinguished Professor Award.
MARY CUSHMAN, MD, MSC
University Distinguished Professor of Medicine,
and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
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"Mary Cushman, Professor of Medicine and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. You are an internationally prominent researcher whose scholarship has advanced our understanding of chronic disease and has resulted in improvements to both patient and community health. You research have been continuously funded by the National Institutes of Health for nearly 30 years. Known as a leader in scientific publishing, you have edited, contributed to, and created numerous journals, you were lauded for being in the top 1% of researchers in clinical medicine in 2018. Your current emphasis on studying the critical role of blood pressure in contributing to the disparity in stroke mortality affecting African-Americans demonstrates your ability to play a leadership role in multidisciplinary teams seeking to solve complex multidisciplinary problems. While leading transformational projects, you are, at the same time, an exemplary mentor to students at various levels of training, and to faculty members. Peers note your collegiality, collaboration, and generosity of spirit, along with an exceptionally creative and inquisitive mind, as being keys to the indelible mark you leave wherever you go.
Mary Cushman, I am honored to recognize your outstanding accomplishments as a scientist, policy maker, teacher, and inspiring mentor by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Medicine, and Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Vermont."
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 21, 2023
at the University's 22nd Commencement Ceremony
KIRK DOMBROWSKI, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Anthropology,
and Vice President for Research and Economic Development
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Before coming to UVM in 2020, Dr. Dombrowski served as Professor of Anthropology and Associate Dean for Research in the College of Arts and Sciences at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Dr. Dombrowski is a highly productive scholar with over 80 peer-reviewed journal publications and three book manuscripts. He has secured over 30 grant awards and has directed several high-profile research centers. At UVM, under his leadership as Vice President for Research, extramural research has grown considerably, exceeding $260 million annually, and the University now boasts several new university-wide centers and institutes with more on the horizon. While much of this success is through collaboration with colleagues, Dr. Dombrowski has provided the creativity, collaborative and entrepreneurial drive, and essential support necessary for this rapid transformation. Using his faculty experience as a successful scholar and grant winner, he has restructured the office of Vice President, establishing the Research Development Office and the Office of Engagement. He has transformed the Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA) to provide the much-needed support for pre- and post-award services. He has collaborated with Deans to launch SPA 2.0 and created the first advisory council for College Associate Deans for Research. He uses a data-informed approach to identify unique areas of scholarly excellence and then supports faculty, builds collaborations, and raises their work profile to increase their competitiveness for significant extramural funding. With his energy, guidance, and leadership, UVM has created the Leahy Institute for Rural Partnerships, the Institute for Agroecology, and the Osher Center for Integrative Health. Under his guidance and leadership, UVM has established new federal partnerships, such as with the USDA, to establish the first new Agricultural Research Station at a university in years. In addition, with his mentorship and support, faculty have secured significant awards like the recent National Science Foundation EPSCoR grant SOCKS (The Science of Online Corpora, Knowledge, and Stories) and funding from the USDA to establish an Agricultural Research Service. In each case, faculty scholarship has been supported to a new level. In each case, our graduate and undergraduate students are engaged in exciting new career-building opportunities. In each case, our community (local, regional, and national) is impacted by the new knowledge research brings, new programming, and services. Dr. Dombrowski highly deserves recognition as a UVM University Distinguished Professor.
LESLEY-ANN DUPIGNY-GIROUX, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Geography and Geosciences,
and Vermont State Climatologist
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Dr. Dupigny-Giroux is a Professor of Geography and Geosciences and a Vermont State Climatologist. She is an internationally renowned eminent scholar in climate science and climate education. Dr. Dupigny-Giroux is appointed for a 3-year term in the prestigious National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Mathematics Advisory Committee to the U.S. Global Change Research Program. In addition, she has been recently elected to a three-year term in the National Academies Board on Atmospheric Sciences and Climate. Dr. Dupigny-Giroux is also the immediate past president of the American Association of State Climatologists. She has been a member of the American Meteorological Society’s Applied Climatology Committee, a National Councilor of the Association of American Geographers (AAG), has chaired the AAG Climate Specialty Group, and was a member of the NOAA Science Advisory Board Climate Working Group. She has also contributed significantly to the 3rd and 4th National Climate Assessments, being a regional chapter lead for the 4th.
TINA ESCAJA, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Romance Languages,
and Gender and Women's Studies
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"Tina Escaja, Professor of Romance Languages, and Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies. You are recognized as the foremost scholar of the works of Delmira Agustini, a Uruguayan poet from the early 20th century, and Ana Rosetti, a contemporary Spanish poet. The breadth of your pioneering research and trans-cultural scholarship, in several genres, is displayed in over one hundred works that include books, book chapters, journal articles, reviews, encyclopedic entries, anthologies, and artistic productions. You are internationally known for your creative and groundbreaking work that integrates poetry and technology—electronic literature—and for your digital exhibits at museums and galleries around the world.
Tina Escaja, I am honored to recognize your stellar accomplishments as a scholar in romance languages, as a poet, artistic collaborator, teacher and inspiring mentor to our students by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Romance Languages, and Professor of Gender and Women’s Studies at the University of Vermont.”
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 19, 2019
at the University’s 218th Commencement Ceremony
STEPHEN T. HIGGINS, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry,
and Psychological Science
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"Stephen T. Higgins, Professor of Psychiatry and Psychological Science. Your overall scientific contributions to the development of contingency management and its potential for broad reach across health care challenges have changed your entire field. Through your work you have demonstrated one of the few recognized clinical interventions that truly works to reduce smoking, alcohol use, and a plethora of other human ailments. You have made substantial and unique contributions in training and preparing young scientists to pursue careers in the substance abuse field, and in supporting and enriching the careers of junior and senior colleagues. As leader of the Vermont Center for Behavior and Health, your contributions have been recognized and applied locally as well as in significant national and international contexts; there are few in the field more respected and more successful than you. You have left a unique imprint on your field, not only through your prolific research, but by being a generous mentor and dedicated teacher.
Stephen T. Higgins, I am honored to recognize your outstanding accomplishments as a scientist, teacher, and researcher by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Psychiatry and Psychological Science at the University of Vermont."
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 21, 2023
at the University’s 222nd Commencement Ceremony
YVONNE M. W. JANSSEN-HEININGER, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine
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“Yvonne Janssen-Heininger, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine. You are a true UVM success story, having completed both graduate work and a postdoctoral fellowship at the university before embarking on your exemplary faculty career. The discoveries made in your UVM laboratory over the past three decades are central to our current mechanistic understanding of chronic lung diseases. You are an internationally recognized expert in Redox Biology for your many contributions to understanding how altered oxidative, anti-oxidative, and metabolic processes in the cell relate to the pathogenesis of lung disease. You are developing potential treatments in lung cancer and lung fibrosis aimed at cellular targets your research has identified. Quite significantly, you are a cherished mentor known for the exceptional quality and diversity of the graduate students and postdocs who work with you.
Yvonne Janssen-Heininger, I am honored to recognize your stellar accomplishments as an experimental pathologist and lung biologist, research leader, and dedicated teacher and mentor by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at the University of Vermont.”
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 22, 2022
at the University’s 221st Commencement Ceremony
BROOKE T. MOSSMAN, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Pathology
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"Dr. Brooke T. Mossman is Professor of Pathology and Director of the Environmental Pathology Program in the College of Medicine. Dr. Mossman is an accomplished scientist, mentor and leader in the field of asbestos-induced carcinogenesis.
Dr. Mossman’s scientific contributions over the past 30 years are numerous and sustained, resulting in international recognition as one of the world’s foremost authorities in the field of fiber carcinogenesis.
Dr. Mossman has provided an important and sustained body of work that continues to inform the world about asbestos. She historically remains the most widely cited researcher in the world on asbestos-related diseases.
Dr. Mossman’s nominators commented that it is difficult to imagine a scientist having more direct impact on the world’s understanding of asbestos-induced cancer, or one who has provided more service to the scientific community over the past 30 years.
Dr. Brooke Mossman stands as a stellar academician and world citizen and is most deserving of holding the title of UVM University Distinguished Professor.
Brooke T. Mossman, I am pleased to recognize you as University Distinguished Professor of Pathology.”
—Provost Jane E. Knodell
Read May 22, 2011
at the University’s 207th Commencement Ceremony
MARK T. NELSON, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology
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"Mark T. Nelson, University Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology. Professor Nelson, you are considered a superb scientist, an effective and admired professor and chair, and a remarkably supporting and nurturing mentor.
Your discoveries and characterizations of diverse channels, Ca2+ sparks and functional changes in vascular smooth muscle have changed the field and now inform all work in smooth muscle function that is published today.
Reviewers observe that the pace of building your research portfolio, with over 170 scientific publications and an astonishing number of those in the journals Science and Nature, appears to be even accelerating. As one reviewer summarized, “Mark T. Nelson is a remarkable and complete scientist of international renown. It is truly appropriate for the University to bestow upon him the title of University Distinguished Professor.”
Mark T. Nelson, I am pleased to recognize you as University Distinguished Professor of Pharmacology.”
—Provost John M. Hughes
Read May 17, 2009
at the University’s 205th Commencement Ceremony
GEORGE F. PINDER, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering
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"George F. Pinder, University Distinguished Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering. Professor Pinder you are an internationally recognized pioneer in the creation and use of computer models for solution of groundwater contamination problems.
Working at the nexus of groundwater hydrology and numerical mathematics, you were the first to recognize the power of this interdisciplinary approach to addressing the critical environmental issue of rehabilitating contaminated aquifers. Always at the forefront of pioneering efforts in groundwater modeling since your days as a graduate student; today you are universally recognized as one of the preeminent scholars of that discipline.
Throughout your career; you have received numerous national and international awards including Fellow of the American Geophysical Society in 1993, the Distinguished Member Medal from the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2012, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Environmental & Water Resources Institute in 2016. You were inducted into the National Academy of Engineering in 2010 – the only member of the University of Vermont faculty inducted in this prestigious academy.
You have held countless leadership positions, including President of the Hydrology Section of the American Geophysical Union and served as the founding Director of what is now the Environmental Engineering Program at Princeton University (recently named the number one Environmental Program in the US). From 1989 to 1996 you served as the Dean of the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences at the University of Vermont.
In addition, you were also the founding editor of two prestigious journals – Advances in Water Resources and Numerical Methods for Partial Differential Equations.
You are a dedicated mentor and role model to countless faculty and students, and a visionary leader who has gained the unwavering admiration of your peers.
George F. Pinder, I am honored to recognize your stellar accomplishments as an engineer and mathematician, teacher and scholar, and a mentor and leader by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of Vermont.
—Provost and Senior Vice President David V. Rosowsky
Read May 21, 2017
at the University’s 216th Commencement Ceremony
PRAMODITA SHARMA, PHD
University Distinguished Professor,
and Schlesinger-Grossman Chair of Family Business
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Dr. Sharma is an internationally recognized scholar in family business studies and is among the most cited scholars in the area. Her research has transformed our understanding of family business succession, governance, and sustainability efforts. She helped shape the fledging field of family business by serving as the editor of the pioneering and leading academic journal, the Family Business Review, from 2008 to 2017. She has also co-authored eleven books. Her leadership of the family business area led to a top 25 global business school ranking for UVM for family business education and research by Family Capital, a London-based publication dedicated to the global family enterprise sector. Dr. Sharma was recently named one of the Top 100 Family Business Influencers by Family Capital. She has been honored with several international awards, including two prestigious lifetime achievement awards: the Barbara Hollander Award of the Family Firm Institute and the Lifetime Influence and Impact Award of the Family Enterprise Research Conference. Dr. Sharma’s work embodies the values of Our Common Ground. Her recognition of the value of diverse perspectives on family enterprises permeates throughout her work and through the Schlesinger Global Family Enterprise Case Competition (SG-FECC) that she launched in 2013, the first case competition in the world focused on the unique issues of family enterprises. Dr. Sharma is highly deserving of recognition as a UVM University Distinguished Professor.
GARY S. STEIN, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry,
and Surgery
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"Gary S. Stein, Professor of Biochemistry and Department Chair, and Professor of Surgery. You are internationally recognized for a vast number of leading-edge discoveries that established new paradigms in the fields of cancer and bone biology. Through transdisciplinary collaborative initiatives, you have addressed health and healthcare challenges encountered in underserved communities locally and internationally. Your work has led to advances in cancer biology and pathology, and has made a lasting impact by providing education and research experiences to students where opportunities were limited. By prioritizing collaboration and collegiality you have developed a network of colleagues across the globe who recognize your dedication and leadership in accelerating progress towards making cancer a preventable and treatable disease. In labs, classrooms, and beyond, you demonstrate a dedication to fairness and improving the human condition through working as part of a diverse group where curiosity and learning drive new discovery.
Gary S. Stein, I am honored to recognize your outstanding accomplishments as an educator, researcher, scientist, and leader by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Department Chair, and Professor of Surgery at the University of Vermont."
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 21, 2023
RUSSELL P. TRACY, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine,
and Biochemistry
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"Russell P. Tracy, Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Biochemistry. You have played a prominent role in elucidating hematologic aspects of cardiovascular disease. Your research through 34 years as a faculty member at UVM has resulted in major discoveries in the molecular, cellular, and genetic epidemiology of blood coagulation, fibrinolysis, and inflammation. Your more than 700 publications have been cited more than 110,000 times, numbers that placed you among the top 1 percent most highly cited researchers of 2018. For the period 1996 to 2011, you were recognized as one of the 400 most highly influential biomedical researchers.
You have served your profession with passion and dedication. Your commitment to UVM is equally impressive including, among many activities, ten years as Senior Associate Dean for Research and Academic Activities for the Larner College of Medicine.
Russell P. Tracy, I am honored to recognize your stellar accomplishments as a biomedical and clinical researcher, teacher and mentor by granting you the title of University Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Biochemistry at the University of Vermont.”
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Read May 19, 2019
at the University’s 218th Commencement Ceremony
DAVID M. WARSHAW, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics
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Dr. Warshaw is a prominent leader in molecular motor research and the development of technologies in his discipline. As a basic scientist he has focused his research on muscle and cell motility making significant contributions to our understanding of the mechanics and regulation of smooth muscle and cardiac muscle. His peers describe him as being able to illuminate “the complexity of muscle mechanics” while communicating “complex concepts in ways students, physicians and scientists without his expertise can appreciate the elegance and the impact of his science.”
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Important Faculty Updates, May 17, 2021
JIANKE YANG, PHD
University Distinguished Professor of Mathematics and Statistics,
and Williams Professor of Mathematics
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Dr. Yang is a pioneer in the study of nonlinear optics in complex media waves, nonlinear photonics and parity-time optics. He has contributed to our understanding of the way light beams can be shaped and redirected through interactions with nonlinear materials. His work as an applied mathematician has been described by his peers as “crucial to the development of all-optical computing systems for image processing and parallel processing problems."
—Provost and Senior Vice President Patricia A. Prelock
Important Faculty Updates, May 17, 2021
Eligibility/Criteria
Nominees must hold a full-time faculty appointment at the University of Vermont at the rank of Full Professor and must have held faculty status at the University for a minimum of 10 years. Exceptions to this 10-year rule can be made to recruit and/or retain highly qualified faculty who meet all other UDP expectations. Current senior administrators at the level of deans, vice presidents, vice provosts, provosts, or presidents with underlying faculty appointments are only eligible for these awards once they return to a full-time faculty assignment.
Nomination Process
Any full-time UVM faculty member, Chairs and Deans may nominate any full-time member of the faculty for a University Distinguished Professor Award. Nominations are due by February 1st every year (if this date falls on a weekend, the due date is the following Monday), and must include the following:
- A nomination letter addressing the nominee’s unique qualifications for this distinguished title, with attention not only to his or her reputation and scholarly achievement but to the ways in which these contributions have proven transformative. Nominators are invited to respond to the question: “But for this individual, what would not have happened?” A strong nomination also speaks to the individual's adherence to Our Common Ground and commitment to advancing diversity and inclusion at UVM and in their profession.
- Two letters from external references addressing the points described in (a) above. These need not be at ‘arm’s length’ but must be from individuals of appropriately high standing in their respective fields. Solicitation of external references is to be handled by the nominator.
- The nominee’s current CV.
Please note that the nomination packet is restricted to the materials enumerated above. Additional materials will be returned to the nominator.
Nomination material should be submitted with the "University Distinguished Professor Award Nomination" as the file name no later than 11:59 PM on February 1st (if this date falls on a weekend, the due date is the following Monday).
Award Committee
Nominations will be reviewed by a committee of University Scholars and University Distinguished Professor Award recipients. The Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs appoints the Chair of the Committee and its members. The Committee recommends candidates for the award to the Provost. The Provost makes the final decision regarding award recipient.
Award Review Committee 2023-2026
Review Committee Chair: Beth Kirkpatrick, Professor & Chair, Department of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics, Larner College of Medicine; AY2021-2022 University Scholars Award recipient.
Review Committee Members:
- Tina Escaja, Professor, Department of Romance Languages & Linguistics, College of Arts & Sciences; AY2018-2019 University Distinguished Professor Award and AY2015-2016 University Scholars Award recipient
- Sylvie Doublié, Professor, Department of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics, Larner College of Medicine; AY2014-2015 University Scholars Award recipient
- Yvonne Janssen-Heininger, Professor, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Larner College of Medicine; AY2021-2022 University Distinguished Professor Award and AY2018-2019 University Scholars Award recipient
- Holger Hoock, Professor, Vice Provost for Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies and Dean, Graduate College
- Lokangaka Losambe, Professor, Department of English, College of Arts & Sciences; AY2014-2015 University Scholars Award recipient
- Kimberly Vannest, Professor & Chair, Department of Education, College of Education & Social Services; AY2021-2022 University Scholars Award recipient
- David Warshaw, Professor & Chair, Department of Molecular Physiology and Biophysics, Larner College of Medicine; AY2020-2021 University Distinguished Professor Award and AY1999-2000 University Scholars Award recipient
- Asim Zia, Professor, Department of Community Development & Applied Economics, College of Agriculture & Life Sciences; AY2020-2021 University Scholars Award recipient
Selection Timeline
- December 1, annually: Call for nominations opens.
- February 1, annually: Nominations due. *(if February 1st falls on a weekend, the due date is the following Monday)
- February 1 - March 30: Nomination reviewed by Awards Committee.
- April 1 - Awards Committee submits list of finalists to the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs at Jokech@uvm.edu. Copy submissions to Jennifer Diaz (she/her) at Jennifer.Diaz@uvm.edu.
- May 1 - The Provost announces award recipient.
For more information, contact Jennifer Diaz (she/her) at Jennifer.Diaz@uvm.edu
Contact Information
Please contact the following individuals with any questions.
Jane E. Okech
Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs
304 Waterman Building
85 South Prospect Street
Burlington, VT 05405
Phone: 802 656-1481
Email: Jane.Okech@uvm.edu
Jennifer Diaz
Executive Assistant to the Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs
304 Waterman Building
85 South Prospect Street
Burlington, VT 05405
Phone: 802 656-8513
Email: Jennifer.Diaz@uvm.edu