BU President Robert A. Brown has appointed two CAS faculty members as the William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professors. Nancy Kopell, the William Goodwin Aurelio Professor of Mathematics and Science, and Larry Kotlikoff, professor of economics, received the honor on June 24.
Named after BU’s first president, the professorships were established in 2008 as a way of recognizing the most distinguished faculty who are involved in research, scholarship, and teaching, as well as the University’s civic life. A faculty advisory committee reviews a number of candidates and sends the recommendations to President Brown, who makes the final selections.
“If one is looking for great scholar/teachers, the College of Arts & Sciences offers many choices across many fields,” said Arts & Sciences Dean Virginia Sapiro. “Professors Kopell and Kotlikoff stand out for their fundamental scholarly contributions to their fields, the international recognition of their work, and their tireless efforts as citizens of Boston University.”
Kopell, who also is the cofounder and codirector of the Center for Biodynamics in the College of Engineering, said she was very grateful to BU for the recognition. “I’m even more grateful for the opportunity I’ve had to work with all my BU colleagues over the 23 years that I’ve been here,” she added. “I think this is an extraordinary place for people to work collaboratively on interdisciplinary questions. BU has also provided opportunities for me via the Aurelio Chair I held before this appointment. So I owe much of my accomplishments to the help of my colleagues and the support of the University.”
“I’m deeply honored,” said Kotlikoff. “I’ve been at BU for 25 years; it’s been a great pleasure to work with my colleagues and the administration to build a world class economics department and university. This honor is the icing on the cake. I view the award as also honoring the many people at BU who have helped me make some headway on the very many critical economic issues confronting our nation and the world.”
Kopell and Kotlikoff join BU colleagues George Annas, the Edward R. Utley Professor of Health Law, Bioethics, and Human Rights and chair of the School of Public Health Department of Health Law, Bioethics and Human Rights, and James Collins, professor of biomedical engineering in the College of Engineering, in receiving the award. President Brown announced the first two appointments last month.