Aug 25, 2023
Dear colleagues,
I am pleased to share that UCI has recently appointed faculty to two campuswide endowed chairs. Julie Schoenung has been named the Daniel G. Aldrich, Jr. Endowed Chair and Albert La Spada has been named the Jack W. Peltason Endowed Chair.
The Daniel G. Aldrich, Jr. Endowed Chair was established in 1984 to honor the contributions made to the campus by UCI’s founding chancellor. The Aldrich chair’s purpose is to honor an outstanding scholar and teacher of the highest distinction whose research has been widely and internationally recognized and acclaimed. Julie Schoenung, Distinguished Professor and Chair, Materials Science and Engineering, is being recognized for her contributions to the advancement of materials research. Her research considers the factors that impact materials selection, with a focus on sustainability. Professor Schoenung is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Inventors. She is a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, Alpha Sigma Mu, the Materials Research Society, the American Ceramic Society, ASM International, and the Minerals, Metals & Materials Society. Professor Schoenung also serves as co-director of the World Institute for Sustainable Development of Materials at UCI.
The Jack W. Peltason Endowed Chair was established in 2007 in honor of UCI’s second chancellor. The Peltason chair is appointed to a professor with a demonstrated commitment to working collaboratively, innovatively, and creatively with other academic disciplines while being engaged in research and teaching activities. Albert La Spada, Distinguished Professor, in the departments of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, and Neurology, is being recognized for his contributions as a highly collaborative scientist and a national leader in biomedical research and genetics education. Professor La Spada has received a National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke Research Program Award and he has been the PI on numerous additional awards. An expert in neurodegenerative diseases, Professor La Spada has attracted a wide range of interdisciplinary collaborators since joining UCI three years ago. In his capacity as leader of a proposed neurodegenerative disease research collaboratory and Director of the UCI Center for Neurotherapeutics, Professor La Spada has brought together UCI faculty from five different schools to develop academic programs that span basic research discovery to translational application.
Please join me in congratulating Professors Schoenung and La Spada.
Sincerely,
Hal Stern
Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor
Chancellor’s Professor, Department of Statistics