For the first time in the history of UCF, five faculty members have been recognized by the Board of Trustees and given Trustee Chair awards.
Professors Glenn Boreman, Henry Daniell, Peter Delfyett, Eduardo Salas and Kay Stanney were nominated by a committee of Pegasus Professors and affirmed by Provost Gary Whitehouse and President John Hitt. Each recipient was chosen based on his or her outstanding research, teaching and scholarly status in their field.
Each professor receives an annual reward of $50,000, which can be renewed each year for a period of five years. The cost of these Trustee Chair appointments, which could total $1.25 million, will be paid for with state funds. The professors can take as much as half of the endowment as supplemental income.
Boreman, a 19-year veteran of UCF, is a professor in the School of Optics/CREOL. He's in charge of the Infrared Systems Laboratory, which specializes in the production and testing of infrared detectors. Earlier this year, Boreman was honored with the Excellence in Graduate Teaching Awarded for his efforts with CREOL.
Delfyett, like his colleague Boreman, is also a professor in the School of Optics/CREOL. The thrust of his research is in the field of high-speed fiber optics systems. His success in developing new technology during his decade at UCF is evidenced by the 12 U.S. patents he holds for UCF.
According to Delfyett, the grant will allow for further exploration of new technology in the field of telecommunications.
Daniell's award follows worldwide media exposure for his work in molecular biology. The Board honored Daniell for creating low-cost vaccines for anthrax and the plague. This and other biotechnology research drew the notice of national and international media - Danielle's work has been profiled on CNN, the British Broadcasting Corporation and in the New York Times.
He said he's looking forward to using the money to supplement the work being done by UCF's biotech company, which he founded. His current project, which seeks to make vaccines and therapeutic proteins available at drastically reduced prices, "has attracted multimillion-dollar investments from prestigious biotechnology investors and pharmaceutical companies this year," he said.
Salas, unlike his fellow appointees, is not involved with technological or biological areas of study. As a psychology professor, Salas focuses on the field of the human condition. His work in the Institute for Simulation and Training has made UCF one of the premier sources of information for teamwork research and development.
As UCF's Distinguished Researcher of 2002, Salas said his sights are set on making UCF the recognized world leader in the study and development of teamwork.
Stanney, the only woman to receive a Trustee Chair award, is a professor of industrial engineering and management systems. Her research with human-centered computing has also earned her this year's award for the College of Engineering and Computer Science's Distinguished Research Lecturer.
Her current work could ultimately lead to the end of computer mice and keyboards; she's developing a method of interacting with computers using the brain directly, translating thoughts into digital signals.
UCF hopes these Trustee Chair awards will help lure prominent professors and researchers, while retaining the most celebrated and valuable staff currently working for the university.
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