Five new named professors have been appointed in recognition of their notable records as scholars and teachers and their distinguished service to the University and beyond. The appointments, announced recently by Provost Dan Rich, are effective Sept. 1.

They are Paul D. Amer, Alumni Distinguished Professor of Computer and Information Sciences; Margaret Andersen, Edward F. and Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg Professor of Sociology and Criminal Justice; Stuart Binder-McLeod, Edward L. Ratledge Professor of Physical Therapy; Howard B. Johnson, Francis H. Squire Professor of History; and Lynn Snyder-Mackler, Alumni Distinguished Professor.

Amer, who has a joint appointment with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, serves as director of UD’s Protocol Engineering Laboratory. His research involves multimedia and transport protocols and data compression in multimedia; protocol specification, testing and verification.

Alumni Distinguished Professorships are funded by endowments supported by the UD Alumni Association.

Andersen’s research focuses on the sociology of race and gender, and she has served as a visiting professor at Stanford University’s Center for Comparative Studies in Race and Ethnicity, where she currently chairs its National Advisory Board and served as the editor of Gender & Society, and at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Women’s Studies Program. She is the author of Thinking About Women: Sociological Perspectives on Sex and Gender.

The late Dr. Edward F. Rosenberg, AS ’29, ’30M, and his wife, Elizabeth Goodman Rosenberg, have provided the University with nearly $7 million in gifts.

Binder-MacLeod has chaired the Department of Physical Therapy since 1998 and also is involved in the Interdisciplinary Graduate Program in Biomechanics and Movement Sciences. His research focuses on the effect of selected electrical stimulation parameters on muscle performance.

The late Edward L. Ratledge, AG ’42, worked in research and development for Sun Oil Co.
Johnson joined the UD faculty in 1990 and was named Alumni Distinguished Professor of History and Black American Studies in 2004. His research has focused on Caribbean and Jamaican history. His books include The White Minority in the Caribbean and After the Crossing: Immigrants and Minorities in Caribbean Creole Society.

Francis H. Squire joined the history department faculty in 1927 and served as dean of arts and sciences from 1945-56.

Snyder-Mackler is a certified sports physical therapist and a certified athletic trainer. She also has served as president of the American Physical Therapy Association Section on Research. Her research focuses on the kinematics of the knee and injured knees and is funded by the National Institutes of Health. She serves on the faculty of UD’s Biomechanics and Movement Science Program.