Here is a sampling of the awards and honors received by CAS faculty in 2014/15:

  • Biology: Tim Gardner, assistant professor of biology, received BU’s prestigious 2014–15 Innovation Career Development Professorship for his research on sensory-motor learning in finches and peripheral nerve stimulation. His research may unlock clues for treating crippling human diseases. The professorship recognizes those whose translational research is likely to lead to future licensed technology. Read more
  • Biology: Richard Primack, professor of biology, is now a Humboldt Research Fellow at the University of Munich, the top fellowship offered by the German government. He will work with researchers from the university to investigate the effects of climate change on the leafing times of trees in the spring and leaf senescence times in the fall.
  • Computer Sciences: The American Academy of Arts & Sciences inducted Leonid Levin, a computer science professor who studies admittedly arcane topics—such as holographic proofs, aperiodic tilings, randomness, and nondeterminism—as one of 204 fellows chosen for its 2014 Class. Read more
  • History: Brooke Blower received a Frederick Burkhardt Residential Fellowship for Recently Tenured Scholars for the 2015–16 academic year, courtesy of the American Council of Learned Societies. The associate professor of history will research the millions of American non-soldiers who participated in World War II for her book, Hidden Fronts: New American Histories of World War II, at Stanford University’s Center for Advanced Studies in the Behavioral Sciences. The fellowship is given to promote boundary-pushing scholarly projects by recipients “in the crucial years immediately following the granting of tenure.” Read more
  • International Relations: Manjari Chatterjee Miller, assistant professor of international relations, was awarded the esteemed Strategy and Policy Fellows Grant from the Smith Richardson Foundation. She will use the grant for her second book project, which will examine the difference between India and China as rising powers and the domestic beliefs that inform their rise. Read more
  • Mathematics & Statistics: Nancy Kopell, professor of mathematics & statistics, has been selected as one of two winners of a Mathematical Neuroscience Prize awarded by Israel Brain Technologies (IBT). IBT’s Mathematical Neuroscience Prize honors researchers worldwide who have significantly advanced our understanding of neural mechanisms of perception, behavior, and thought through the application of mathematical analysis and theoretical modeling. Read more
  • Mathematics & Statistics: Mark Kramer, associate professor of mathematical neuroscience, won a National Science Foundation CAREER award for his work in better understanding the brain mechanisms that drive seizures in people with epilepsy. Read more
  • Middle East & North Africa Studies: Margaret Litvin, director of the Middle East & North Africa Studies program, will spend the 2015–16 academic year at the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, courtesy of a Frederick Burkhardt Residential Fellowship for Recently Tenured Scholars from the American Council of Learned Societies. She will work on her next book, tentatively titled Another East: Arab Writers, Moscow Dreams. Read more
  • Political Science: Virginia Sapiro, political science professor and former CAS dean, received the 2015 International Society for Political Psychology’s Harold Lasswell Award. The Lasswell Award is a lifetime achievement award given to one recipient each year for “distinguished scientific contributions in the field of political psychology.” Read more
  • Psychological & Brain Sciences: Howard Eichenbaum, professor of psychological & brain sciences and director of the BU Center for Memory & Brain, joined some of the world’s most accomplished thinkers as a fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Eichenbaum’s research focuses on how the brain stores and retrieves memories. Read more
  • Psychological & Brain Sciences: The Society of Experimental Psychologists (SEP) honored Stephen Grossberg, professor of psychology, with the 2015 Norman Anderson Lifetime Achievement Award for his pioneering theoretical research on how brains give rise to minds. Only 5–10% of experimental psychologists hold memberships to the SEP. Read more
  • Sociology, International Relations: Susan Eckstein, professor of sociology and international relations, was awarded the prestigious John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Fellowship for her continuing research on Cuban immigration. Fellows are appointed on the basis of prior achievement and exceptional promise. Read more

Annual Report 2014/2015

  • From the Dean From the Dean
    From recruiting ever-better faculty and students to surging ahead in our capital campaign, academic year 2014/2015 was a year of great accomplishments.
  • A New Era Begins at CAS A New Era Begins at CAS
    On August 1, 2015, CAS welcomed its new dean, Ann Cudd. Dean Cudd brings her own unique energy and vision to CAS and GRS and is deeply committed to enhancing—and affirming—the value of a liberal arts education.
  • Improving Undergraduate Education Improving Undergraduate Education
    CAS once again attracted our most talented class of undergraduates ever. And we laid the groundwork to serve them even better, offering expanded academic opportunities and a comprehensive First-Year Experience program with over 800 first-year participants.
  • Strengthening Graduate Education Strengthening Graduate Education
    BU’s Graduate School of Arts & Sciences continues to see a dramatic increase in applicant quality and enrollment due to our new five-year PhD funding model that has heightened the attractiveness of our doctoral programs. New program initiatives have also resulted in more applicants to our master’s programs.
  • Enhancing a World-Class Faculty Enhancing a World-Class Faculty
    The quality of a university depends on the quality of its faculty, and hiring the best and giving them a strong start is crucial. In 2014/15, CAS hired 26 new professors across the humanities and social, natural, and computational sciences.
  • Conducting Pathbreaking Research Conducting Pathbreaking Research
    Discoveries and innovations at CAS help make BU one of the top 40 research universities in the world. Many fields of study at CAS are also highly ranked, including social sciences, physics, molecular biology and genetics, and psychology.
  • Deepening Our Global Mission Deepening Our Global Mission
    CAS is a major contributor to the international character of Boston University. The 2014–15 academic year was particularly eventful in this respect, being the inaugural year for the Frederick S. Pardee School of Global Studies.
  • Creating Our Future: The CAS Strategic Plan at Halftime Creating Our Future: The CAS Strategic Plan at Halftime
    In 2010, the College of Arts & Sciences crafted a bold 10-year plan to enhance all aspects of what we do: advancing undergraduate and graduate education, research, global partnerships, and the College’s relationships with its alumni. Over the past five years, we have made great strides toward these goals.
  • Nurturing Connections with Alumni and Friends Nurturing Connections with Alumni and Friends
    The College continues to develop new opportunities to engage and connect with CAS alumni and friends. In 2014–15, more than 5,000 CAS alumni registered for events hosted by the BU Alumni Association, accounting for 25% of all BU alumni event engagement.
  • Growing Our Capacity and Stewarding Our Resources Growing Our Capacity and Stewarding Our Resources
    The College continues to develop new opportunities to engage and connect with CAS alumni and friends. In 2014–15, more than 5,000 CAS alumni registered for events hosted by the BU Alumni Association, accounting for 25% of all BU alumni event engagement.
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