Presidential Communications

Written Communications

April 25, 2017 - Two professors named Lantis Endowed University Chairs

To: Campus Community
From: President Gayle E. Hutchinson

I am pleased to announce the selection of anthropology professor Eric Bartelink and biological sciences professor Donald G. Miller as Lantis Endowed University Chairs. Their selection follows a very competitive process featuring 18 strong faculty applications.

Professor David Lantis was a faculty member of the Department of Geography who understood that private giving would help to enrich the teaching and learning environment of the University. Professor Lantis and his wife, Helen, donated $2 million to endow a university chair in their name, which allows for the annual funding of two university chairs. Past recipients of the Lantis University Chair are Michael Ennis, Susan Roll, Georgia Fox, Rachel Teasdale, David Colson, Michelle Neyman Morris, Stephen Lewis, Greg Kallio, Tracy Butts, Kate Transchel, Lori Beth Way, and Byron Wolfe.

Professors Bartelink and Miller will each receive a $40,000 award to advance their research and student-centered projects.

Provost Debra Larson and I thank the Lantis University Chairs Selection Committee, chaired by Interim Associate Vice President for Academic Personnel Sarah Blakeslee, for its time and expertise in choosing the recipients for this prestigious honor. Below are some details about this year’s Lantis Endowed University Chairs:

Anthropology professor Eric Bartelink will use the Lantis professorship to aid in the identification effort of unidentified border crossers recovered from Arizona and Texas using stable isotope analysis. Both graduate and undergraduate students will assist in the effort through the preparation of samples and analysis and interpretation of the data.

Biological sciences professor Don Miller plans to use the Lantis professorship toward finding ecological evidence for the accelerated rates of evolutionary change through tracking population sizes of host aphids and their parasites across time. He will collaborate with the Gateway Science Museum in a Foothills Exhibit showcasing natural habitats of our region and educating the public on the value of conservation and management of natural resources. Hundreds of students will be trained in field ecological methods and participate in this project.