MSU Research Foundation Professors

Overview

Established in 2014 through the generosity of the MSU Research Foundation, the university awards the title "MSU Research Foundation Professor" to selected current and new faculty. Award of the title is intended to assist MSU in recruitment, recognition, and retention of outstanding faculty at all academic ranks, with the primary aim of enhancing the international stature of the institution in research and creative activity.

The award of the title will be made to individuals who combine externally recognized, exemplary scholarly accomplishment with clear professional relevance to specific areas of MSU scholarly need, disciplinary development, or research or creative emphasis.

Faculty awardees retain the title of "MSU Research Foundation Professor" for the duration of their service at MSU. Typically, each also receives scholarly support for the first five years after their award.

Nomination Process

Submission materials for the online form should include:

A letter of nomination from an MSU dean.
Substantial and laudatory written assessment of the accomplishments and/or prospects of the awardee from external peer reviewers.
Approval by the Provost and the Vice President for Research and Innovation

Support for item #2 may include evidence such as:

Letters of recommendation
Referee reports from scholarly publications and grant proposals
Published critical reviews of professional books, film, art exhibits, musical, dance or theatre performance, or other similar creative activity.
Citations from externally awarded prizes or honorary degrees.

Upon selection, the nominating dean and awardee will be notified of approval by the Office of Research and Innovation, and the home college of the professor will prepare an announcement to the University community. Nominations for MSU Research Foundation Professorships are accepted throughout the year and reviewed by a committee each Fall and Spring semester. Newly named MSU Research Foundation Professors are invited to the university investiture event held in the fall.

The next deadline for nominations is February 14, 2025.

Nomination Form

For any questions, please contact:

Brooke Gallagher-Rademacher
Chief of Staff
Office of Research and Innovation
Email galla106@msu.edu
517-355-0306

Bruno Basso '17, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Earth & Environmental Sciences
Christoph Benning '14, College of Natural Science, Plant Research Laboratory
Federica Brandizzi '15, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Plant Biology
Ruth Nicole Brown '21, College of Arts and Letters, Dept. of African American and African Studies
Honglei Chen, '22, College of Human Medicine, Dept. of Epidemiology and Biostatistics
Andrew Christlieb '14, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Computational Mathematics, Science & Engineering
Katherine Connelly '23, College of Engineering, Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering, Office of Research and Innovation
Marcos Dantus '15, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Chemistry
Dimitar Deliyski '15, College of Communication Arts and Sciences, Dept. of Communicative Sciences Disorders CAS
Dean Della Penna '14, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Biochemistry
Todd Elder '20, College of Social Science, Dept of Economics
Asgi Fazleabas '18, College of Human Medicine, Dept. of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology
Ken Frank '15, College of Education, Dept. of Counseling, Educational Psychology & Special Education
Linda Greene '22, College of Law
Brian Gulbransen '17 College of Natural Science, Neuroscience Program
Gregg Howe '16, College of Natural Science, Plant Research Laboratory
Xuefei Huang '17, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Chemistry
Joey Huston '16, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Physics-Astronomy
Jerlando F. Jackson '23, Dean College of Education
Thomas Jayne '15, Professor Emeritus, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Dept. of Agricultural Food & Resource Economics
Jiming Jiang '17, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Plant Biology
Deborah Johnson '22, College of Social Science, Dept. of Human Development and Family Studies
Russell Johnson '20, Eli Broad College of Business, Dept. of Management
R. James Kirkpatrick *, '17, College of Natural Science, Depts. of Chemistry, and Earth and Environmental Sciences
Chris Klausmeier '16, College of Natural Science, Kellogg Biological Station
James Klausner '16, College of Engineering, Dept. of Mechanical Engineering
Kelly Klump '14, College of Social Science, Dept. of Psychology Social Science
Elena Litchman '16, College of Natural Science, Kellogg Biological Station
Xiaoming Liu, '21, College of Engineering, Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering
Yunhao Liu '18, College of Engineering, Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering
Saweda Liverpool-Tasie '23, College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Dept. of Agricultural, Food, and Resource Economics
Richard Lucas '15, College of Social Science, Dept. of Psychology Social Science
Tapabrata (Taps) Maiti '17 College of Natural Science, Dept. of Statistics & Probability
Shannon Manning '15, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics CNS
Laura McCabe '19 Colleges of Natural Science and Osteopathic Medicine, Depts. of Physiology and Radiology
James McCusker '17 College of Natural Science, Dept. of Chemistry
Joydeep Mitra, '22 College of Engineering, Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering
David Morgan '19 College of Human Medicine, Dept. of Translational Science and Molecular Medicine
Amirpouyan Nejadhashemi '19 College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Depts. of Biosystems and Agricultural Engineering and Plant, Soil and Microbial Sciences
Thomas O’Halloran '21 College of Human Medicine, and College of Natural Science, Depts.of Chemistry and Dept. of Microbiology & Molecular Genetics
Ioannis "John" Papapolymerou '15, College of Engineering, Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Piotr Piecuch '20, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Chemistry
Hayder Radha '20, College of Engineer, Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Seung Yon Rhee '24, College of Natural Science, Depts. of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Plant Biology, and Plant, Soil, and Microbes
Peter Savolainen '18, College of Engineering, Dept. of Civil and Environmental Engineering
Xiaobo Tan '16, College of Engineering, Dept. of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Jiliang Tang, '23, College of Engineering, Dept. of Computer Science and Engineering
Terrie Taylor '19 College of Osteopathic Medicine, Dept. of Tropical Medicine
Cameron Thies '22 Dean of James Madison College
Michael Thomashow '16, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Plant Soil & Microbial System
Alexander (Sasha) Volberg '15, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Mathematics
Guowei Wei, '20, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Mathematics
Teresa Kaye Woodruff '20, College of Human Medicine, Depts. of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology and Biomedical Engineering
Yimin Xiao '18, College of Natural Science, Dept. of Statistics and Probability

* Deceased