Four faculty members receive Hilldale Awards

Four faculty members at UW–Madison have been awarded the prestigious Hilldale Award in recognition of distinguished contributions to teaching, research and extension/outreach.

The award acknowledges top professors in four divisions of the university: humanities, social sciences, physical sciences and biological sciences. Recipients are nominated by their peers and selected by a divisional committee.

The award originated in 1987 with former Chancellor Irving Shain. It is made possible by the Hilldale Fund, which receives income from the operation of the Hilldale Shopping Mall. Each recipient receives a cash award of $7,500 and the opportunity to share knowledge by presenting a lecture to their colleagues, students and the general public.

The awards will be presented at a meeting of the Faculty Senate on Monday, May 5. The recipients are:

Grace Wahba
Professor, Department of Statistics; professor, Department of Biostatistics and Medical Informatics, Medical School; professor, Department of Computer Sciences

Wahba has been a member of the statistics department at UW–Madison for more than 35 years. She developed an outstanding research program, particularly in the area of statistical smoothing techniques. She is internationally recognized in the theory of and computational methods for these techniques and their uses in building statistical models.

Wahba was elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1986. She has been elected fellow of the major statistical societies, the American Statistical Association and the Institute of Mathematical Statistics. She is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the International Statistical Association and the American Meteorological Association.

In 1994, Wahba won the National Science Foundation’s Creativity Award and the first Emanuel and Carol Parzen Prize for Statistical Innovation.

She earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Cornell University, a master’s degree in mathematics from the University of Maryland and a doctorate in statistics from Stanford University.

Judith Kimble
Professor, Department of Biochemistry; professor, Department of Medical Genetics; and professor, Molecular Biology Laboratory

A UW–Madison faculty member for 20 years, Kimble established a successful independent laboratory early in her career, and she has become world renowned for her research and discoveries relating to developmental molecular biology.

Kimble has been elected to the American Philosophical Society, the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. She served as president of the Genetics Society of America in 2000. UW–Madison has honored her with the Pound Award for Excellence in Research, a Romnes Fellowship, the WARF Mid-Career Award and a Vilas professorship.

Kimble has served or is serving on many national and international committees and advisory panels. In addition, she is a senior investigator for the Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and has been on the editorial boards of journals such as Cell, Science, Journal of Cell Biology and Development. She has also published numerous articles in the research publications of her field.

She received a bachelor’s degree from the University of California-Berkeley and a doctorate from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Janet Shibley Hyde
Helen Thompson Woolley Professor of Psychology and Women’s Studies

Hyde joined UW–Madison in 1986 as the director of the Women’s Studies Research Center. She became associate vice chancellor for academic affairs in 1990. From 1996-2001, Hyde held the title of Evjue-Bascom Professor of Women’s Studies. Her research has focused on psychological gender differences, the public policy issue of maternity (or parental) leave and human sexuality.

A fellow of the American Psychological Association and the Society for the Scientific Study of Sexuality, Hyde’s teaching ability has been honored often. In 1996, she received the Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Teaching.

Hyde has served on the State of Wisconsin’s Governor’s Task Force on the Glass Ceiling, the Board of Directors of the National Council for Research on Women, and the American Psychological Association’s Publications and Communications Board. She is a member of many professional organizations in her field.

Hyde has been the editor of Psychology of Women Quarterly and has acted as associate or consulting editor for several other journals. She has written two textbooks, “Half the Human Experience: The Psychology of Women” and “Understanding Human Sexuality.”

Recipient of a B.A. degree in mathematics from Oberlin College and a doctorate in psychology from the University of California-Berkeley, Hyde also holds an honorary degree from Denison University.

Ronald Numbers
Hilldale and William Coleman Professor of the History of Science and Medicine; chair, Department of Medical History and Bioethics

Numbers has been on staff at UW–Madison for 28 years. He is known for his research on the history of American medicine, the relationship between science and religion, the intersection of scientific and religious approaches to health and healing, and the ramifications of Darwinism in America.

A fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, Numbers has also been honored with a WARF professorship and a Hilldale professorship. He has served three times on the Council of the History of Science Society, and has been president and vice president, and acted as editor of the society’s journal Isis. He also has served as president and vice president of the American Society of Church History. Currently, he chairs the American Association for the History of Medicine’s publications committee.

An author of five books and numerous articles, Numbers is editor or co-editor of 13 books and three multi-volume works. A textbook and two more edited volumes will be published soon.

Numbers received B.A. degrees in mathematics and physics from Southern Missionary College, a master’s degree in history from Florida State University and a doctorate in history from the University of California-Berkeley.