The University of Kentucky Board of Trustees approved 14 University Research Professorships for the 2022-23 academic year, including Dr. David Fardo, Professor of Biostatistics, Stephen W. Wyatt Endowed Professor of Public Health at the UK College of Public Health. Full list can be found here.
Established by the Board of Trustees in 1976, the professorships program recognizes excellence across the full spectrum of research, scholarship, and creative endeavors at UK. The award recipients will be invited to a special ceremony to be recognized.
“It is truly gratifying to recognize these distinguished experts who have made significant contributions across the breadth of research fields at the University of Kentucky,” said Lisa Cassis, UK’s vice president for research. “The 2022-2023 University Research Professorship Awards honor 14 faculty members who have demonstrated excellence that addresses scientific, social, cultural, and economic challenges in our region and around the world.”
College leadership developed criteria for excellence within their area of expertise, and then nominated faculty who excelled at these criteria. Each University Research Professor receives a one-year award of $10,000 to be used to further their research, scholarship and creative endeavors.
“Receiving the University Research Professorship is humbling, and it reflects the many amazing transdisciplinary teams I’ve had the honor of working with," says Fardo.
Dr. David Fardo is a Professor of Biostatistics and the inaugural Stephen W. Wyatt Endowed Professor of Public Health. He serves as Affiliate Faculty in the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging and as co-Investigator in the National Institute on Aging (NIA)-funded UK Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC).
Dr. Fardo is currently the principal investigator of two awards from the NIA, researching genetic risk factors contributing to various neuropathological endophenotypes and multiple neurodegenerative diseases. His currently funded collaborative work ranges from therapeutic targeting of the genes TREM2 and SHIP1 for AD to investigating novel pathogenetic mechanisms for hippocampal sclerosis and risk factors for conversion to mixed dementias.
He has developed several courses across the spectrum of CPH degree programs and offer graduate courses in statistical genetics. He has served UK and CPH in a variety of roles including as an Academic Leadership Academy Fellow and as Chair of CPH Faculty Council and the Appointment, Promotion and Tenure Committee.
The University of Kentucky College of Public Health is undergoing a review by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH) for re-accreditation. Part of this process includes the invitation to provide third-party comments. Anyone, including students, alumni, employers, community partners, etc., is allowed to share relevant information about the college directly with CEPH. If you would like to provide input to CEPH to inform their review, send your comments to submissions@ceph.org by May 4th, 2025.
