Preacher in Chief. Jonathan L. Walton, who joined the Divinity School faculty in 2010 and is a resident scholar in Lowell House, has been appointed Pusey minister in the Memorial Church and Plummer professor of Christian morals, effective July 1. He succeeds the late Peter J. Gomes. A graduate of Morehouse College, Walton earned his master’s and Ph.D. degrees at Princeton Theological Seminary; he is an ordained Baptist minister. Walton, his wife, Cecily Cline, and their twins, Elijah Mays and Zora Neale, will move into Sparks House on campus. In the statement announcing his appointment, Walton said, “Sitting in the pews of Memorial Church, I have felt the special power of this place.…I will do my utmost to continue the Church’s tradition of intellectually challenging and spiritually nourishing preaching, its outreach to students of all faiths, and its impact well beyond Harvard Yard.” F or a full report, see http://harvardmag.com/walton-12.
Premier Professors. The Faculty of Arts and Sciences has named five Harvard College Professors—a recognition, conferred annually and lasting five years, honoring distinguished undergraduate teaching and advising. The honorands, who receive extra research funding and a semester of paid leave or summer salary, are: Diana L. Eck, Wertham professor of law and psychiatry in society and master of Lowell House; poet Jorie Graham, Boylston professor of rhetoric and oratory; Daniel Kahne, professor of chemistry and chemical biology; Jill M. Lepore, Kemper professor of American history; and David C. Parkes, McKay professor of computer science. For other teaching and advising awards, see http://harvardmag.com/fas-prize-12.
Pulitzer Prized. Cogan University Professor Stephen Greenblatt has won the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction for The Swerve: How the World Became Modern—which also won a 2011 National Book Award (see “Swerves” ). Tracy K. Smith ’94, a member of Princeton’s creative-writing faculty, won the Pulitzer Prize for poetry for her third collection, Life on Mars. Former Nieman Fellow Ken Armstrong, NF ’01, of The Seattle Times, shared the prize for investigative journalism. Mary Schmich, NF ’96, of The Chicago Tribune, won the prize for distinguished commentary; New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof ’82, a member of the Board of Overseers, was a finalist in that category.
American Academy Honorands. Newly elected fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences include these faculty members: Emery N. Brown, Zapol professor of anaesthesia; R. Nicholas Burns, Sultan of Oman professor of international relations; historian Lizabeth Cohen, dean of Radcliffe Institute; Daniel Kahne, professor of chemistry and chemical biology, and of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology; Mitzi I. Kuroda, professor of genetics; Abraham Loeb, professor of astronomy; Jonathan B. Losos, Lehner professor for the study of Latin America and curator in herpetology; Diane J. Mathis, Grove-Rasmussen professor of immunohematology; Kathleen McCartney, dean of Harvard Graduate School of Education; James A. Robinson, Florence professor of government; David T. Scadden, professor of stem cell and regenerative biology; Adrian Vermeule, Watson professor of law; and David B. Wilkins, Kissel professor of law.
Radcliffe Roster. The Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study has appointed 51 fellows for the next academic year, including these faculty members: I. Glenn Cohen, assistant professor of law; Caroline Elkins, professor of history; Annette Gordon-Reed, professor of law and of history; Lisa McGirr, professor of history; Ingrid Monson, Quincy Jones professor of African-American music; Radhika Nagpal, Cabot associate professor of computer science; Sarah Richardson, assistant professor of the history of science and of studies of women, gender, and sexuality; and Andrew Strominger, York professor of physics.
