Five earn prestigious faculty titles in 2023

At The Ohio State University, endowed and distinguished faculty positions are essential to achieving ever-increasing excellence in our missions of teaching, research and societal impact.

In 2023, the College of Engineering bestowed prestigious titles and roles to 17 faculty members, including five in the William G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.

Endowed positions are one of the highest honors the college can bestow upon our faculty. They illustrate the powerful partnership between faculty and philanthropists in defining areas of discovery and bringing them to life. By funding endowed chairs, donors can convene the brightest minds to focus on particular problems or issues and spur advances in those areas.

Awarded to faculty who have achieved great distinction, endowed positions universally acknowledge research and scholarship of the highest caliber and signify the broad impact of the individual’s work. Endowed positions also aid in the recruitment and retention of faculty who are at the top of their respective fields, enhancing their ability to secure future funding.

CBE faculty named to endowed positions

The Ervin G. Bailey Chair in Energy Conversion

• Associate Professor Nick Brunelli, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Established in 1978, the endowment’s income provides salary and program support for a distinguished teacher, researcher and engineer in the field of energy conversion. Bailey graduated from Ohio State in 1903. A prolific inventor, he served as 67th president of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers and was recipient of the 1942 ASME Medal.

The Bernice L. Claugus Endowed Chair in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

• Professor Rachel Getman, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Established in 2015 with an estate gift from alumnus Edward W. Claugus, a private investor and aviation enthusiast who earned his bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering in 1981. Honoring his mother, the gift to his alma mater ensures that his academic passion, as well as students who share it and the college that helped cultivate it, will be among the best in the world for decades to come.

H. C. "Slip" Slider Professorship in Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

• Assistant Professor Joel Paulson, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

Established in 2008 with a gift from Distinguished Alumnus William G. Lowrie and his wife Ernestine in honor of Lowrie’s former professor and mentor, Slip Slider, who greatly influenced his choice of career and inspired him to help others in return. The Slider Professorship supports an untenured junior faculty member to establish their research program.

CBE faculty named to distinguished positions

College of Engineering Innovation Scholar

• Associate Professor Eduardo Reátegui, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering
• Associate Professor Katelyn Swindle-Reilly, Biomedical Engineering, Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering

This honorific recognizes tenure track associate professors with a minimum of five years’ service in the college for intellectual leadership, excellence and performance in research, teaching and professional service.