Two faculty joined the ranks of regents professors Thursday night at an award ceremony for the College of Science.

Department heads, professors and retired faculty gathered at the catered event to present awards to distinguished members of the college and to welcome new faculty to the university.

“”This is an incredible college in a lot of ways,”” said speaker Joaquin Ruiz, dean of the College of Science. “”But it’s incredible because of the faculty that are here and the faculty that are retiring.””

The recitation of honors began with the acknowledgment of the new regents professors in the college. The faculty joining the ranks of the regents professors are Howard Ochman, of the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and Elizabeth Vierling, of the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics.

President Robert Shelton presented the Citation for Transformative Department Head Leadership to Edgar McCullough Jr., emeritus professor of geosciences.

“”He was one of the first people to take an interdisciplinary approach to geosciencesway ahead of his time,”” Shelton said. “”Everything is interdisciplinary now.””

McCullough was a professor at the university for 43 years and was the head of the Department of Geosciences from 1970 through 1982.

“”Now I’m working with a group called ‘No More Deaths,'”” McCullough said. “”It provides humanitarian aid along the U.S.-Mexico border.””

Ruiz acknowledged the rest of the award recipients within the college, which included university, national and international honors.

Some professors who were highlighted included William Bickel, an emeritus professor of physics who was given the Distinguished Career Teaching Award and Michael Rosenweig, a professor of ecology and evolutionary biology who was named the Eminent Ecologist of the Year by the Ecological Society of America.

After the awards were presented, Ruiz paid tribute to retiring faculty members and welcomed those who were recently hired for the 2008 school year. Ruiz introduced 14 new professors in the college who were hired across 10 departments and research groups.

“”One of the big changes I’ve seen at the university throughout my time here is the commitment to getting undergraduates involved in research,”” Davis said. “”The great universities are the ones that have quality right across the whole landscape. That’s what we have here.””