Two SU educators named to prestigious Kenan professorships

Two SU educators named toprestigious Kenan professorshipsFebruary 25, 2005Edward Byrnesedbyrnes@syr.edu

The College of Arts and Sciences at Syracuse University has announced the appointment of M. Cristina Marchetti, professor of physics, and John E. Baldwin, Distinguished Professor and chair of the chemistry department, to William R. Kenan Jr. Professorships. Nationwide, only about 120 academics share this major honor.

“We take immense pride in the accomplishments of these two illustrious scholars and mentors. Professors Marchetti and Baldwin share a rare combination of attributes-commitment to the most exacting standards for their own scientific work, along with great generosity of time and spirit in the mentoring of students and colleagues. The Kenan Professorship of Science honors this rare combination,” says Cathryn R. Newton, dean of The College of Arts and Sciences.

Marchetti, who has taught at SU for almost two decades, is known for her research in condensed matter theory and statistical mechanics. Recently, she was named chair of the scientific advisory board of the prestigious Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara.

She has served on numerous prominent advisory committees and boards, including those of the National Science Foundation, the American Physical Society (APS), the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University of California, Santa Barbara, and the Boulder Summer School in Condensed Matter Physics. Professor Marchetti was previously elected as an APS Fellow. Recently, she was named a recipient of the 2005 Chancellor’s Citation for Exceptional Academic Achievment at SU.

Marchetti received her Laurea in physics cum laude from the University of Pavia in Italy, and her doctorate in physics from the University of Florida. She held postdoctoral positions at the University of Maryland, Rockefeller University and City College of CUNY, and then served for one year as assistant professor of physics at the University of Illinois.

Baldwin, a faculty member at SU since 1984, is a physical organic chemist whose research contributions have earned him high praise and recognition. Baldwin’s primary field of study involves in-depth experimental examinations of the thermal rearrangements and fragmentations of relatively simple hydrocarbon molecules. His work contributes to a deeper understanding of chemical reactivity, better theory relevant to structure-reactivity concepts and more ambitious exemplifications of what can be learned about chemical transformations.

Baldwin, who was born and raised in Illinois, graduated summa cum laude with an A.B. degree from Dartmouth College and earned his doctorate at the California Institute of Technology. He is a former Sloan Fellow, Guggenheim Fellow and Alexander von Humboldt Award winner.

Newton adds that the appointments are a reflection of the forward momentum of The College, whose prize-winning science faculty and integrative approach to science education and research are nationally recognized. This success, she says, is translating into the construction of a Life Sciences Complex at SU, due to open in 2008.

William Rand Kenan, Jr., (1872-1965) was a chemist, engineer, industrialist, farmer and philanthropist. He worked mainly in the fields of chemical and mechanical engineering and had a lifelong interest in education. He was born and raised in North Carolina, and went on to major in chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he participated in the discovery of calcium carbide and its use in the production of acetylene. In his will, he created the William R. Kenan Jr. Charitable Trust, which, among other activities, endows the Kenan Professorships.