The University System of Maryland has awarded a Wilson H. Elkins Professorship to Rajeswari M. Kolagani, TU professor of physics, for fiscal year 2015.
In his announcement, Chancellor William E. Kirwan said the Elkins Professorship review committee was impressed with Kolagani’s plans and believed that her ventures “have the potential to have a significant and longstanding impact on students at Towson and beyond.”
The chancellor added, “I’m certain you know how enthusiastic I am to be able to support this project, especially with the System’s commitment to STEM outreach.”
Kolagani has devoted a large portion of the past six years to the creation of TU’s Professional Science Master’s Program in applied physics, for which she serves as graduate director.
The Elkins Professorship includes an award of $79,760 to support her plans for the coming year, which will focus on engaging graduate and undergraduate students in applied condensed matter research in her laboratory; strengthening the Professional Science Master’s Program in applied physics by developing its advisory board; investigating professional science master’s programs expansion at TU; and exploring collaborations with other USM institutions in a five-year B.S./M.S. program.
“We are proud that this prestigious honor has been bestowed upon one of our Towson faculty members,” says Timothy Chandler, TU acting president. “This professorship equally recognizes and applauds the significant contributions that Dr. Kolagani’s collaborative approach and excellent work with undergraduate and graduate students bring to the field of science.”
Kolagani earned her Ph.D. in physics from the Indian Institute of Science. She was a research associate and an assistant research scientist at the University of Maryland, College Park before joining TU’s Department of Physics, Astronomy and Geosciences in 2001 as an assistant professor. She is now a professor of physics.
Her research field is condensed matter physics. She focuses on perovskite metal oxide thin films and their potential energy applications, including thermoelectric materials and catalytic materials for hydrogen fuel generation. Since joining TU’s faculty she has received over $1 million in extramural support.
The Wilson H. Elkins Professorship was established in 1978 as the first permanently endowed, university-wide professorship at the University of Maryland. The professorship perpetuates the name and contributions of Wilson H. Elkins, president of the university from 1954 to 1978. When the University System of Maryland began in 1988, Dr. Elkins agreed that his professorship should extend to all USM member institutions.
