Career Development Professorships Awarded to Five BU Researchers | The Brink

They’re scholars of Latin American literature and Asian history, experts in biomedical engineering and computing, organic chemistry, and biology—and now, five rising star Boston University faculty are also winners of prestigious Career Development Professorships. The high-caliber awards, given annually by BU’s Office of the Provost, recognizes “talented junior educators emerging as future leaders within their respective fields.”

The professorships provide stipends for the recipients’ salaries and research for the next three years. The awards are named in honor of the donors and alumni who fund them, with winners nominated by their respective deans and selected by the provost’s office. 

“Our current cohort of Career Development Professors are incredibly impressive both in terms of the breadth of their work and the impact they have already had on their fields. They bring energy, exciting new ideas, and fresh approaches to their research and teaching,” says Gloria Waters, University provost and chief academic officer. “We are grateful to our generous donors and alumni for their support and shared belief in the promise these rising colleagues present.” 

This year’s Career Development Professors are:

Shibulal Family Career Development Professorship, established by BU Trustee S. D. Shibulal (MET’88)

Brian Cleary, a Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences assistant professor, who holds appointments in biology and biomedical engineering, investigates the nature of molecular, cellular, and tissue processes by integrating computational and algorithmic tools into biology research. Called “a deep thinker and fearless leader-in-the-making,” by his nominator, Azer Bestavros, a William Fairfield Warren Distinguished Professor of Computer Science and associate provost for BU’s Faculty of Computing & Data Sciences, Cleary “truly embraces the integrative, cross-cutting culture of CDS and embodies the qualities needed to be a leading innovator in data science.” 

East Asia Studies Career Development Professorship, supported by an anonymous BU alum based in Taiwan

Daigengna Duoer, a College of Arts & Sciences assistant professor of religion, who explores the religion and politics of China, Japan, and Russia, “is a rising star in Asian studies,” writes her nominator, Stan Sclaroff, dean of Arts & Sciences. “She is a highly promising scholar making significant contributions to interdisciplinary studies of Asia, writ large, with focus on China’s shifting borders and dynamic tensions with other modern nations and empires.” 

Innovation Career Development Professorship, sponsored by BU Technology Development

Joseph Derosa, a CAS assistant professor of chemistry, studies metal ions, electrochemical processes, and organic compounds. He is developing catalysts—substances that fuel chemical reactions without changing themselves—with great potential in the development of new drugs and chemicals. “An outstanding and highly promising young researcher,” says Sclaroff in his nomination, Derosa’s transformative work is likely to “drive efforts to develop new medically relevant pharmacological targets.” 

Wetherill-Bloom Career Development Professorship in the Humanities, supported by the estate of Virginia Wetherill (CAS’52) and Laurence Bloom (DGE’66, CAS’68) 

Catalina Rodríguez, a CAS assistant professor of Spanish, is a scholar of Latin American literature and culture from the 19th century to the present. Her studies have helped untangle questions about the use of gendered pseudonyms in Latin American literature and what it meant for the genre of women’s writing historically. “She has recovered previously inaccessible materials related to [19th-century] women writers,” Sclaroff points out, and she “has shown remarkable promise as a researcher and teacher.” 

Peter J. Levine Career Development Professorship, endowed by Peter J. Levine (ENG’83) 

Tianyu Wang, a College of Engineering assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering, combines physics and optical principles with computer science to gain insights on how to engineer better computing, sensing, and imaging systems—like figuring out how to deliver detailed deep-tissue medical images of the human brain. “His work is important in pushing the physical limits of computation and the design of advanced sensing hardware,” says his nominator, Elise Morgan, ENG dean ad interim and Maysarah K. Sukkar Professor of Engineering Design and Innovation, and he is “already off to an excellent start” since joining BU in early 2024.