Barbara Schaal named Mary-Dell Chilton Distinguished Professor
Barbara A. Schaal has been named the Mary-Dell Chilton Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences and will be installed on March 9, 2009.
"As one of our country's most outstanding biologists, Barbara Schaal is an excellent selection as the inaugural recipient of this distinguished professorship," said Chancellor Mark Wrighton. "Dr. Schaal has demonstrated impressive leadership skills both in her service to Washington University and the nation through her role with the National Academy of Sciences." Professor Schaal embodies excellence in research, teaching, leadership and service.
Schaal, an evolutionary plant biologist, counts over 150 publications and is well known for her work on the genetics of plant species, particularly the studies that use DNA sequences to understand evolutionary processes such as gene flow, geographical differentiation, and the domestication of crop species. Dr. Schaal’s research is primarily supported through highly competitive funding from the National Science Foundation. Her lab often collaborates with the Missouri Botanical Garden, one of the oldest botanical institutions in the United States. Her research uses a wide variety of techniques, from field observations to quantitative genetics and molecular biology. She studies plant species native to the U.S., tropical crops and their wild relatives, and Arabidopsis, the first plant to have its entire genome sequenced.
Professor Schaal brings additional distinction to Washington University in her current position as vice president of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, one of the world’s most prestigious science academies. Additionally, she plays a significant role in addressing scientific issues of concern to the U.S. government by chairing the Division on Earth and Life Studies of the National Research Council. "Many scientists I meet in this country and internationally know Barbara or know of her work. We are fortunate to have her on our faculty,” said Edward S. Macias, Ph.D., Provost and the Barbara and David Thomas Distinguished Professor in Arts & Sciences.
Born in Berlin, Germany in 1947, Professor Schaal became a U.S. citizen in 1956. She grew up in Chicago, graduated with honors from the University of Illinois-Chicago with a degree in biology, and received a doctorate from Yale University in 1974. She was on the faculty of the University of Houston and Ohio State University before joining Washington University in 1980. Here, she holds a joint appointment as both Professor of Biology in Arts & Sciences and Professor of Genetics at the School of Medicine. She has served as the chair of the biology department and is a longstanding member of the Arts & Sciences Academic Planning Committee. She was named the Spencer T. Olin Professor in Arts & Sciences in 2001.
Her career includes an extensive list of service, honors and awards. She has been president of the Botanical Society of America and president of the Society for the Study of Evolution. She has received a Guggenheim Fellowship, the Wilbur Cross Medal from Yale University, the Key award from the American Genetics Association, and a Distinguished Alumni award from the University of Illinois, among others. Professor Schaal is an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Her recognition within the University includes the Founder’s Distinguished Faculty award, the Arthur Holly Compton Faculty Achievement award, and Graduate Student Mentor award.
Professor Schaal is dedicated to the teaching mission of Washington University. Outside of the classroom, she regularly involves undergraduates in her labs, serving as a mentor to many. She takes great pride in mentoring graduate students and post-docs, listing them prominently on her webpage under a "Hall of Fame" category. Students from her lab now hold post-doctoral fellowships and academic positions across this country and in Taiwan, Mexico, and the United Kingdom.
Mary-Dell Chilton is the Distinguished Science Fellow and Principal Scientist II at Syngenta Biotechnology, Inc. in Research Triangle Park, N.C. A key founder of modern plant biotechnology, she is the author of more than 100 scientific publications. Dr. Chilton was on the faculty of the biology department in Arts & Sciences at Washington University in the late 1970s and early 1980s. During that time, she led a collaborative research study that produced the first transgenic plants. This groundbreaking research was the basis for the many significant contributions plant biotechnology has made to agriculture today. Dr. Chilton received her Ph.D. from the University of Illinois and has been recognized with an honorary doctorate from the University of Louvaine, the John Scott Medal from the City of Philadelphia, membership in the National Academy of Sciences and the Benjamin Franklin Medal in Life Sciences from the Franklin Institute.
