Indiana University celebrated the appointment of 15 faculty members as distinguished professors during virtual symposia starting Oct. 21. Distinguished professor is the highest academic title for IU's most outstanding and renowned scholars and researchers. This is the largest number of new distinguished professors to be appointed in the university's history.

The record number is being recognized in honor of IU's Bicentennial Year and to highlight the remarkable research, scholarship and creative accomplishments of IU's past and present faculty as well as their public impact over the past 200 years.

Below are brief biographies of the appointees:

Charles Geyh

Charles Geyh is the John F. Kimberling Chair and professor in the Maurer School of Law. His scholarship focuses on the operation of state and federal courts in relation to the political branches of government and the legal profession. His work on judicial independence, accountability, administration and ethics has appeared in more than 80 books, articles, book chapters, reports and other publications.

Jeffrey Gould

Jeffrey Gould is a Rudy Professor of History in the College of Arts and Sciences' Department of History. He is a groundbreaking historian, writer and filmmaker whose work has transformed scholarship on social movements in Nicaragua and El Salvador. He helped build the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies into one of the leading research centers of its kind. He's authored several books and articles, and several have been published in Spanish.

Chandan Sen

Chandan Sen is the J. Stanley Battersby Chair and professor of surgery at the School of Medicine. He and a team of more than 30 scientists study how to tap into the power of regenerative medicine and engineering to heal burns, develop new therapies for diabetic complications, treat injured soldiers and even regrow damaged and diseased tissue. Sen has published more than 300 articles and is cited more than 2,000 times a year in literature.

Marietta Simpson

Marietta Simpson is a Rudy Professor of Music in the Jacobs School of Music. She is one of the most sought-after mezzo-sopranos and is greatly admired for the rich beauty of her deeply expressive voice. Simpson has performed with many of the world's great conductors and has performed with all the major orchestras in the U.S. and most of those in Europe.