On June 10, the University of Michigan Medical School honored the 42 faculty members who were appointed to named professorships in 2024. A named professorship is one of the highest honors bestowed on a faculty member.
Medical School leadership gathered with the honorees for a reception in the Gilbert S. Omenn Atrium in the A. Alfred Taubman Biomedical Science Research Building.
“Professorships have long been a way for us to recognize the contributions and achievements of our esteemed faculty members, and to share our gratitude for their commitment and service to the organization,” said Marschall S. Runge, M.D., Ph.D., dean of the Medical School and a recipient of the McKay Professorship in 2024. “Your contributions help us remain at the forefront of growth, to build upon existing knowledge, develop innovative approaches to health care, and conduct groundbreaking research.”
The very first professorship ever established at the University of Michigan was in the Medical School. In 1898, Dr. Elizabeth Bates, a physician from a small town in upstate New York, who practiced medicine with her physician-father for many years, left nearly her entire estate to the University to establish a professorship in her family name to advance understandings in women’s and children’s health. The Bates Professorship for the Diseases of Women and Children was the first endowed professorship established by an individual anywhere at the University.
As of June 2025, the Medical School boasts 481 named professorships, with UMMS holding the most professorships of any school or college at the University of Michigan.
Pediatric faculty members who received named professorships in 2024:
Patrick J. Grohar, M.D., Ph.D.
Russell G. Adderley Professorship in Pediatric Oncology
Naomi Laventhal, M.D., M.A.
Charles Neil Weller Children’s Development Research Professorship
Prashant Mahajan, M.D., MPH, MBA
William G. Barsan Collegiate Professorship in Emergency Medicine
