This January, Associate Dean of Research and Advancement and Linguistics Professor, Shobhana Chelliah received notice of her award for the University Distinguished Research Professor award. Chelliah’s research on language documentation and endangered South Asian Languages began years ago. It became her mission to support the international education of UNT students through interacting with speaker communities and institutions back in India and supporting language documentation there. She is working to create the infrastructure to secure digital archives which will serve as a resource for research on and revitalization of South Asian languages and cultures.
The purpose of this award is to recognize tenured faculty at the rank of professor who has achieved a truly exceptional record of creative activities or research productivity and who demonstrate a record of continued extraordinary productivity. The award consists of the designation “University Distinguished Research Professor.”
To be eligible for the award an individual must be a full-time tenured professor, have a record of exceptionally distinguished research or creative activity demonstrated throughout their career. Up to five awards may be made per year to the most qualified candidates. The University Distinguished Research Professor Selection and Review committee reviews all nominations.
The award recipients are recognized during the Salute to Faculty Excellence dinner and ceremony in the fall.
John ‘Haj’ Ross is the last linguist and College of Information faculty member to receive the honor in 2012.