Professor John Porco selected as the new Samour Family Professor of Chemistry
It with great pleasure that we announce Professor John Porco has just been selected by the College of Arts and Sciences (CAS) Dean Ann Cudd to be our Samour Family Professor of Chemistry for the 2018 – 2023 term. This endowed Chaired position in the Boston University Chemistry Department was first established in 2003 by Carlos M. Samour, a scientist and entrepreneur who earned his doctorate in organic chemistry from Boston University in 1950. Dr. Samour, was a research chemist and Director for the Kendall Company before founding MacroChem Corporation in 1981, a publicly held medical products company where he served as chairman and scientific director. He was a member of the CAS Dean’s Advisory Council and the GRS Academy of Distinguished Alumni. Professor James Panek was named the first Samour Professor and held that title for the past 15 years.
As per the charter, the Samour Family Professor is “a scholar whose work will advance the stature of the profession and the Department of Chemistry at Boston University.” Professor Porco’s impressive research accomplishments and ongoing scientific efforts to develop synthetic methodologies for efficient chemical synthesis of bio-active molecules, exploit parallel synthesis techniques to create complex chemical libraries and his leadership of collaborative team efforts to realize the medicinal translational impact of these synthetic strategies for improved human health outcomes demonstrate that his work embody all these qualities. His work, whose impact was also recognized by his receipt of the ACS Arthur C. Cope award in 2009, has resulted in more than 200 publications, over 10,000 citations, and has attracted ~$27M in funding since coming to BU.
Congratulations to Prof. Porco!