Earlier this week, the College of Polymer Science and Polymer Engineering celebrated the retirement of Dr. Stephen Z.D. Cheng, former dean of the college and Frank C. Sullivan Distinguished Research Professor of Polymer Science.
A luncheon was held in his honor at the Goodyear Polymer Center where faculty, staff, and guests gathered to listen to guest speakers Dr. John C. Green (UA Interim President), Dr. Luis M. Proenza (UA President Emeritus), and Dr. Frank N. Kelley (Dean Emeritus and Professor Emeritus, CPSPE). Following their talks, Dr. Cheng spoke about his career at UA and the significance of the college and its role in the world of polymers.
Cheng received his Ph.D. degree at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and joined The University of Akron as an Assistant Professor in the Department of Polymer Science in 1987. He has supervised 40 M.S., 84 Ph.D. Students, and 64 postdoctoral students over the span thirty-one years at UA. He has given more than 600 invited lectures, published 500 research papers, and attracted $35M in research funding. In 2008, he became a member of the National Academy of Engineering and in 2013 he was awarded the Polymer Physics Prize by the American Physical Society.
Congratulations to Dr. Cheng on his retirement and best of luck in all his future endeavors.