Chancellor Daniel Diermeier and Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs C. Cybele Raver honored 41 scholars from across Vanderbilt at an endowed chair investiture ceremony on March 20. While it was only the third such investiture ceremony in Vanderbilt’s history, the university’s tradition of endowed chairs dates back to 1918.
“Throughout this long lineage, the purpose has remained the same: to support learning, discovery and innovation that will shape our world,” Diermeier said at the event, held at the Vanderbilt Student Life Center.
In his remarks Diermeier acknowledged the donors, several of whom were in attendance, who made the endowed chair positions possible.
“Their gifts are varied and often deeply personal, but they all reflect a commitment to build the future—to empower the next chapter in the long history of learning, discovery and impact. And we are deeply grateful for their generosity and support,” he said.
The distinguished faculty members representing six colleges and schools were presented with a specially designed medallion that symbolizes the attainment of this position and will become part of their official academic regalia. The cohort represents a broad range of research areas, including aerospace infrastructure, cancer treatment, developmental psychology, climate change, and the intersection of music and philosophy.
“As an endowed chair, you set the standard for thoughtful, collaborative, creative intellectual leadership and the power of ideas,” Raver said. “Each of you is being celebrated for being truly expert, and at the same time, each of you is a pathbreaker, a leader in your respective fields because you regularly step back from canonical or crystallized ways of knowing to see a problem or a question in a new light.” Raver charged the new chairs to continue to dare to discover, inspire and lead others.
Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Tracey George served as emcee of the ceremony and presented the newly endowed chair holders.
The following faculty members were celebrated on March 20:
- Rebecca Haw Allensworth, J.D., David Daniels Allen Distinguished Chair in Law
- Daniel A. Barocas, M.D., MPH, William L. Bray Chair in Urology
- Ralf Bennartz, Ph.D., Stevenson Chair
- James W. Bodfish, Ph.D., Thomas L. and Jane Wilkerson Yount Chair in Hearing and Speech Sciences
- Carissa J. Cascio, Ph.D., James G. Blakemore Chair in Psychiatry
- Jessica Clarke, J.D., Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair in Law
- Daniel Andrei Cohen, Ph.D., Frances Hampton Currey Chair
- Christos Constantinidis, Ph.D., Stevenson Chair
- Blythe A. Corbett, Ph.D., James G. Blakemore Chair in Psychiatry
- Kelly Dooley, M.D., Ph.D., MPH, Addison B. Scoville Jr. Chair in Medicine
- Jennifer Escalas, Ph.D., Dean Samuel B. and Evelyn R. Richmond Chair in Management
- René Headrick Gifford, Ph.D., Fred H. Bess Chair in Audiology
- Kelly Ann Goldsmith, Ph.D., E. Bronson Ingram Chair
- Steven L. Goodbred Jr., Ph.D., Stevenson Chair
- Anna R. Hemnes, M.D., Elsa S. Hanigan Chair in Pulmonary Medicine
- Julián F. Hillyer, Ph.D., Centennial Chair
- Xiaodong Kevin Huang, Ph.D., Andrew and Jennifer Hoine Chair in Economics
- Eunjoo Kim, Ph.D., Charles G. Finney Chair
- Stephen Jae Kim, M.D., Phyllis G. and William B. Snyder, M.D. Chair in Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences
- Emily Lordi, Ph.D., Edwin Mims Chair in English
- Timothy P. McNamara, Ph.D., Gertrude Conway Vanderbilt Chair in the Social and Natural Sciences
- Keith G. Meador, M.D., Th.M, MPH, Anne Geddes Stahlman Chair in Medical Ethics
- Aaron Moberly, M.D., Guy M. Maness Chair in Otolaryngology
- Çağlar Oskay, Ph.D., Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair
- Ben Park, M.D., Ph.D., Benjamin F. Byrd Jr. Endowed Chair in Oncology
- Anthony Reed, Ph.D., Norman L. and Roselea J. Goldberg Professor of Fine Arts
- Todd A. Ricketts, Ph.D., Thomas L. and Jane Wilkerson Yount Chair in Hearing and Speech Sciences
- Morgan Ricks, J.D., Herman O. Loewenstein Chair in Law
- Renã Robinson, Ph.D., Dorothy J. Wingfield Phillips Chair
- Amanda M. Rose, J.D., Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair in Law
- Kathryn Schwarz, Ph.D., Gertrude Conway Vanderbilt Chair
- Sean Seymore, J.D., Ph.D., Centennial Professorship in Law
- Ravi Shah, M.D., Gottlieb C. Friesinger II Chair in Cardiovascular Medicine
- Scott Stephan, M.D., Carol and John Odess Chair in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
- Anne Marie Tharpe, Ph.D., Vickie and Thomas Flood Chair in Hearing and Speech Sciences
- Lisa Lynette Thompson, Ph.D., Cornelius Vanderbilt Chair
- Emilie Townes, Ph.D., D.Min, E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Chair
- Steven D. Townsend, Ph.D., Stevenson Chair
- Zachary E. Warren, Ph.D., Donna and Jeffrey Eskind Family Chair in Autism Spectrum Disorder
- Neil Woodward, Ph.D., Charlotte and Donald Test Jr. Chair in Psychiatry
- Yesha Yadav, LL.M., Milton R. Underwood Chair
Watch a recording of this year’s endowed chair investiture ceremony.