Members of Oregon State University faculty granted an appointment as a University Distinguished Professor have amassed truly exceptional records in scholarship and creative work, teaching and mentoring, and public engagement and service. Since 1988, OSU has awarded the designation each year to a very a limited number of faculty nominated by their peers. The title is the highest faculty honor granted by the University.
2024
Todd S. Palmer
University Distinguished Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering
2024
Małgorzata Peszyńska
University Distinguished Professor of Mathematics
Lecture: Math Matters: Multi-* Modeling, Analysis and Simulation
2023
Emily Ho
University Distinguished Professor of Nutrition
Lecture: From B to Z: Food & Nutrients to Help You Live Better Longer
2023
Yanyun Zhao
University Distinguished Professor of Food Science and Technology
Lecture: A Challenging Yet Rewarding Journey in Search of Sustainable Food Packaging Solutions
2022
Michael Freitag
University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
Lecture: Epigenetics: I Know It When I See It
2022
Kathryn Higley
University Distinguished Professor of Nuclear Science and Engineering
Lecture: Bugs, Bunnies, and Bombs: Radioecology's Role in Radiation Protection
2022
Brent Steel
University Distinguished Professor of Public Policy
Lecture: The Democracy and Technocracy Quandary: Science, Scientists, and the Policy Process
2021
Julia Jones
University Distinguished Professor of Geography
Lecture Title: Ecosystem Response to Climate Change at Long-Term Ecological Research Sites
2021
Richard Settersten
University Distinguished Professor of Life Course and Human Development
Lecture Title: Human Development and a Sociological Imagination: A Social Scientist's Journey
2020
Yuji Hiratsuka
University Distinguished Professor of Art
Lecture Title: The Art of Print Making: Process and Content
2020
David Williams
University Distinguished Professor of Environmental And Molecular Toxicology
Lecture Title: Eat Live - Eat Die: Carcinogens and Anti-Carcinogens in Food
2019
Clare Reimers
University Distinguished Professor of Ocean Ecology and Biochemistry
Lecture Title: Carbon Cycling at the Seafloor: 40 Years of Advanced Science
2019
Mas Subramanian
University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
Lecture Title: The Surprising Science of Discovery: Stumbling onto a New Colorful Materials World
2019
Virginia Weis
University Distinguished Professor of Integrative Biology
Lecture Title: In Sickness and in Health: Studying Coral Symbiosis in the Age of Climate Crisis
2018
Edward Brook
University Distinguished Professor of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences
Lecture Title: The History of the Atmosphere and Climate from Polar Ice Cores: Is Past Prologue?
2018
Joey Spatafora
University Distinguished Professor of Botany and Plant Pathology
Lecture Title: How Fungi Changed the World
2018
Janet Tate
University Distinguished Professor of Physics
Lecture Title: With a Little Help From My Friends: Collaborative Materials Research and
Incorporating Research into the Undergraduate Curriculum
2017
Alan Mix
University Distinguished Professor of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences
Lecture Title: Past Dial Future: Potential Climate Tipping Points and Their Impacts in a Warming World
News Release
Complete Lecture (1:11:39)
2017
John Selker
University Distinguished Professor of Biological and Ecological Engineering
Lecture Title: Seeing Water Through Fresh Eyes
2016
Margaret Burnett
University Distinguished Professor of Computer Science
Lecture Title: "Womenomics" and Gender-Inclusive Software: What Software Practitioners Need to Know
2016
Peter Clark
University Distinguished Professor of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences
Lecture Title: Sea Level Rise Due to Global Warming: Next 100 to 10,000 Years
2015
Andy Karplus
University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
Lecture Title: Teaching, Teamwork, “Aha!” Moments and Peering into the World of Proteins
Complete Lecture (1:11:13)
2015
Jon Lewis
University Distinguished Professor of Film Studies
Lecture Title: Hollywood Confidential: Crime and Punishment in Postwar Los Angeles
Complete Lecture (1:07:55)
2014
Marie Harvey, University Distinguished Professor of Public Health
College of Public Health and Human Sciences, May 15, 2014
William Ripple, University Distinguished Professor of Ecology
College of Forestry, May 15, 2014
2013
Thomas Dietterich, University Distinguished Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science
College of Engineering, May 5, 2013
Joseph Beckman, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
College of Science, May 5, 2013
2012
Andrew Blaustein, University Distinguished Professor of Zoology
College of Science, May 5, 2012
Stephen Giovannoni, University Distinguished Professor of Microbiology
College of Science, May 5, 2012
2011
Luiz Bermudez, University Distinguished Professor of Biomedical Sciences
College of Veterinary Medicine, May 4, 2011
Robyn Leigh Tanguay, University Distinguished Professor of Molecular Toxicology
College of Agricultural Sciences, May 4, 2011
2010
James Carrington, University Distinguished Professor of Botany and Plant Pathology
College of Agricultural Sciences, May 5, 2010
Balz Frei, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry and Biophysics
College of Science, May 5, 2010
2009
Alan Acock, University Distinguished Professor of Human Development and Family Science
College of Health and Human Sciences, May 13, 2009
Jeff McDonnell, University Distinguished Professor of Hydrology
College of Forestry, May 13, 2009
2008
Tracy Daugherty, University Distinguished Professor of English and Creative Writing
College of Liberal Arts, September 16, 2008
Steven H. Strauss, University Distinguished Professor of Forest Biotechnology
College of Forestry, July 1, 2008
2007
Jeffrey A. McCubbin, University Distinguished Professor of Exercise Science
College of Health and Human Sciences, September 16, 2007
Lewis Semprini, University Distinguished Professor of Environmental Engineering
College of Engineering, September 16, 2007
2006
Douglas A. Keszler, University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
College of Science, September 16, 2006
Patricia A. Wheeler, University Distinguished Professor of Oceanic & Atmospheric Sciences
College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, July 1, 2006
2005
K. Norman Johnson, University Distinguished Professor of Forest Resources
College of Forestry, July 1, 2005
Bruce A. Menge, University Distinguished Professor of Marine Biology
College of Science, September 16, 2005
2004
Daniel J. Arp, University Distinguished Professor of Botany & Plant Pathology
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 2004
Dudley B. Chelton, University Distinguished Professor of Oceanic & Atmospheric Sciences
College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences, July 1, 2004
2003
Kathleen Dean Moore, University Distinguished Professor of Philosophy
College of Liberal Arts, September 16, 2003
Jeffrey J. Morrell, University Distinguished Professor of Wood Science
College of Forestry, July 1, 2003
2000
James W. Ayres, University Distinguished Professor of Pharmaceutics
College of Pharmacy, September 16, 2000
Ronald E. Wrolstad, University Distinguished Professor of Food Science & Technology
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 2000
1999
Henry M. Sayre, University Distinguished Professor of Art History
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1999
John Sessions, University Distinguished Professor of Forestry
College of Forestry, July 1, 1999
1998
Michael V. Oriard, University Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1998
Arthur W. Sleight, University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
College of Science, July 1, 1998
1997
William Robbins, University Distinguished Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1997
Fred Stormshak, University Distinguished Professor of Animal Sciences
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 1997
1996
Larry Boersma, University Distinguished Professor of Soil Science
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 1996
Frank L. Moore, University Distinguished Professor of Zoology
College of Science, July 1, 1996
1995
George S. Bailey, University Distinguished Professor of Food Toxicology
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 1995
Richard H. Waring, University Distinguished Professor of Forest Science
College of Forestry, July 1, 1995
1994
David Robinson, University Distinguished Professor of American Literature
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1994
William Sandine, University Distinguished Professor of Microbiology
College of Science, July 1, 1994
1993
Paul Farber, University Distinguished Professor of History of Science
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1993
Jo-Ann Leong, University Distinguished Professor of Microbiology
College of Science, July 1, 1993
Jane Lubchenco, Distinguished Professor of Zoology
College of Science, July 1, 1993
1992
Marcus J. Borg, University Distinguished Professor of Religion and Culture
College of Liberal Arts, July 1, 1992
James D. White, University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
College of Science, July 1, 1992
1991
Arthur Boucot, University Distinguished Professor of Zoology and Geology
College of Science, July 1, 1991
Christopher Mathews, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics
College of Science, July 1, 1991
1990
John Fryer, University Distinguished Professor of Microbiology
College of Science, July 1, 1990
Donald J. Reed, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry
College of Science, July 1, 1990
1989
Warren E. Kronstad, University Distinguished Professor of Plant Breeding & Genetics
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 1989
T. Darrah Thomas, University Distinguished Professor of Chemistry
College of Science, July 1, 1989
1988
Harold J. Evans, University Distinguished Professor of Plant Physiology
College of Agricultural Sciences, July 1, 1988
Kensal van Holde, University Distinguished Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics
College of Science, July 1, 1988