Distinguished Professors
Each year, the Office of the Provost issues a call for nominations for promotion to the rank of Distinguished Professor. This is the highest faculty rank that the university bestows and is awarded only to a few of its most prominent faculty members A senior faculty committee is convened by the Office of the Provost and the Office of the Executive Vice President for Health Sciences, in consultation with the Faculty Senate Operations Committee, to review nominations. Procedures for nominations are outlined in the annual call, linked below. To be considered, nominations must have the support of departmental colleagues, department chair, college dean, and must include a minimum of six external letters from prominent senior scholars, primarily at R1 universities and international equivalents. Nominating departments are responsible for obtaining external review letters, and may do so only with the approval of the relevant college dean. See the annual call for nominations for further details.
- Call for Distinguished Professors (updated annually)
- Statement by Nominator (PDF)
- Statement by Nominator (Word Document)
- Individual Faculty Recommendation re: Nominee
Full list of Distinguished Professors
2023-2024
Elaine Bearer, Pathology, School of Medicine
Matthew Campen, Pharmaceutical Sciences, College of Pharmacy
Cameron Crandall, Emergency Medicine, School of Medicine
Tobias Fischer, Earth and Planetary Sciences, College of Arts and Sciences
Mala Htun, Political Science, College of Arts and Sciences Learn more
Tiffany Lee, Native American Studies, College of Arts and Sciences Learn more
Gabriel Lopez, Chemical and Biological Engineering, School of Engineering
Xin (Robert) Luo, Marketing, Information, and Decision Science, Anderson School of Management
Robert Miller, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
2022-2023
Ivan Deutsch, Physics and Astronomy, College of Arts and Sciences
Felisa Smith, Biology, College of Arts and Sciences
Pavel Lushnikov, Mathematics and Statistics, College of Arts and Sciences
Jennifer Rudgers, Biology, College of Arts and Science
William Shuttleworth, Neurosciences, School of Medicine
John Stormont, Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering, School of Engineering
2021-2022
Ronald Christensen, Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Kimberly Page, Department of Internal Medicine
Akshay Sood, Department of Internal Medicine
Angela Wandinger-Ness, Department of Pathology
Karin Westlund-High, Department of Anesthesiology and Critical Care
Cosette Wheeler, Department of Pathology
Katie Witkiewitz, Department of Psychology
2020-2021
Lisa Broidy, Department of Sociology
Alex Buium, Department of Mathematics
Joseph Cook, Department of Biology
Laura Crossey, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Jeremy Edwards, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Fernando Garzon, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Kerry Howe, Department of Civil, Construction and Environmental Engineering
Mary Ann Osley, Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
Nina Wallerstein, College of Population Health
Douglas Ziedonis, Department of Psychiatry
2019-2020
Yemane Asmerom, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Claudia Isaac, Department of Community and Regional Planning
Terry Loring, Department of Mathematics and Statistics
Sherman Wilcox, Department of Linguistics
Arup Das, Division of Ophthalmology and Department of Surgery
Eve Espey, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Maurico Tohen, Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences
2018-2019
Vojo Deretic, Department of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology
Adrian Johnston, Department of Philosophy
Marek Osinski, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Eric Prossnitz, Department of Internal Medicine Learn more
2017-2018
Mohamed El-Genk, Department of Nuclear Engineering
Timothy Graham, Department of History
Karl Karlstrom, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Vallabh (Raj) Shah, Department of Internal Medicine and Biochemistry
Greg Taylor, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Mahmoud Taha, Department of Civil Engineering
2016-2017
Mark Burge, Department of Internal Medicine
Jian “Jim” Liu, Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences and Department of Neurology
Kurt Nolte, Department of Pathology and Radiology
Anil Prinja, Department of Nuclear Engineering
Jim Stone, Department of Art and Art History
Adrian Brearley, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
2015-2016
Jose M. Canive, Department of Psychiatry and Neurosciences
Scott Collins, Department of Biology
Martin Kirk, Department of Chemistry
Sharon Nepstad, Department of Sociology
David Whitten, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Robert Williams, Department of Family and Community Medicine
2014-2015
Arthur Bankhurst, Department of Internal Medicine Division of Rheumatology
Bill Gilbert, Department of Art and Art History
Hua Guo, Department of Chemistry and Chemical Biology
Robert Sapien, Department of Emergency Medicine and Pediatrics
Daniel Savage, Department of Neurosciences
Zachary Sharp, Department of Earth and Planetary Sciences
Cheryl Willman, UNM Cancer Treatment Center
2013-2014
Scott Burchiel, Department of Pharmaceutical Studies
Kathryn Foucar, Department of Pathology
William Rayburn, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology
Plamen Atanassov, Department of Chemical and Biology Engineering
Lani Gunawardena, Department of Organizational, Information and Learning Sciences
Gabriel Melendez, Department of American Studies
Edl Schamiloglu, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering Learn more
Mansoor Sheik-Bahae, Department of Physics and Astronomy
2012-2013
Sanjeev Arora, Department of Internal Medicine
Vince Calhoun, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Christos Christodoulou, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Stephanie Forrest, Department of Computer Science
Pope L. Moseley, Department of Internal Medicine
Steven Walsh, Department of Finance and Innovation Management
2011-2012
Marianne Berwick, Department of Internal Medicine in Epidemiology
David Brookshire, Department of Economics
Jane Lancaster, Department of Anthropology
Eric Samuel Loker, Department of Biology
David Schade, Department of Internal Medicine in Endocrinology
Victor C. Strasburger, Department of Pediatrics
Howard Yonas, Department of Neurosurgery
2010-2011
James W. Ellis, School of Law
O.C. Ferrell, Department of Marketing, Information, and Decision Science Management
Miguel Gandert, Department of Communication and Journalism
Theodore Jojola, Department of Community and Regional Planning
Enrique Lamadrid, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
Virginia Scharff, Department of History
Christopher Shultis, Department of Music
David Sklar, Department of Emergency and Internal Medicine
2009-2010
No nomination/award process
2008-2009
Arthur Kaufman, Department of Family and Community Medicine
Larry A. Sklar, Department of Pathology
2007-2008
Jeffrey Brinker, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering
Patricia L. Crown, Department of Anthropology
Sul Kassicieh, Department of Finance and Innovation Management
Barbara McCrady, Department of Psychology
Gerald Vizenor, Department of American Studies
2006-2007
David Craven, Department of Art and Art History
Abhaya K. Datye, Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering Learn more
Larry Davis, Department of Neurology
Linda B. Hall, Department of History
Deepak Kapur, Department of Computer Science
2005-2006
Jonathan Abrams, Department of Internal Medicine in Cardiology
Keith Basso, Department of Anthropology
Steven Brueck, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering; Physics and Astronomy
Carlton Caves, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Judith Chazin-Bennahum, Department of Theater and Dance
Steven Gangestad, Department of Psychology
Fred Hashimoto, Department of Internal Medicine
Paul Hutton, Department of History
Ruth Luckasson, Department of Educational Specialties
Tey Diane Rebolledo, Department of Spanish and Portuguese
Howard Waitzkin, Department of Sociology
2004-2005
Joan Bybee, Department of Linguistics
Steven Feld, Department of Anthropology and Music
Chris Garcia, Department of Political Science
Nitant Kenkre, Department of Physics and Astronomy
Robert T. Paine, Jr., Department of Chemistry
Gary Scharnhorst, Department of English
Lawrence Guy Straus, Department of Anthropology
Eberhard Uhlenhuth, Department of Psychiatry
Prior honorees
James Brown, Department of Biology
Eric Charnov, Department of Biology
Henry Ellis, Department of Psychology
Louise Lamphere, Department of Anthropology
William Miller, Department of Psychology
Albert Thornhill, Department of Biology